[cleanairuk_news] Health Effects of Air Quality and Noise - update November 2013

Network for Clean Air contact at cleanairuk.org
Sat Dec 14 17:34:42 GMT 2013


* Health Effects of Air Quality and Noise - update November 2013 *

By Barbara Rimmington, Researcher, East End Quality of Life Initiative

(Previous edition - October 2013:
http://cleanairuk.org/pipermail/news_cleanairuk.org/2013-November/000059.html)

*CONTENTS*

1) Co-benefits of post-2012 global climate mitigation policies

2) Association between pre-eclampsia and locally derived  
traffic-related air pollution: a retrospective cohort study

3) Epidemiological evidence on association between ambient air  
pollution and stroke mortality

4) Residential proximity to major roadways and renal function

5) Acute nasal pro-inflammatory response to air pollution depends on  
characteristics other than particle mass concentration or oxidative  
potential: the RAPTES project

6) Components of ambient air pollution affect thrombin generation in  
healthy humans: the RAPTES project

7) Mortality Associations with Long-Term Exposure to Outdoor Air  
Pollution in a National English Cohort

8) Fluctuations in air pollution give risk warning signals of asthma  
hospitalization
Nan-Hung Hsieh, Chung-Min Liao

9) Measurement of airborne concentrations of tire and road wear  
particles in urban and rural areas of France, Japan, and the United  
States

10) Assessment of toxic potential of primary and secondary  
particulates/aerosols from biodiesel vis-à-vis mineral diesel fuelled  
engine

11) Nitrogen dioxide is genotoxic in urban concentrations

12) Early lung development: lifelong effect on respiratory health and disease

13) Effects of air pollution on fetal development—more than low birthweight?

14) The carcinogenicity of outdoor air pollution

15) Ambient air pollution and low birthweight: a European cohort study  
(ESCAPE)

16) Air pollution and childhood leukaemia: a nationwide case-control  
study in Italy

17) Associations between ambient air pollution and gestational  
hypertension in a nova scotia pregnancy cohort

18) Observational approaches in the study of the effects of Total  
Suspended Particulates (TSP) exposure

19) Aircraft noise and cardiovascular disease near Heathrow airport in  
London: small area study

20) Aircraft noise and health

- o -

1) Co-benefits of post-2012 global climate mitigation policies

Peter Rafaj, Wolfgang Schöpp, Peter Russ, Chris Heyes, Markus Amann

This paper provides an analysis of co-benefits for traditional air  
pollutants made possible through global climate policies using the  
Greenhouse Gas and Air Pollution Interactions and Synergies (GAINS)  
model in the time horizon up to 2050.

Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change August 2013,  
18, 6, 801-824 - read abstract  
(http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11027-012-9390-6)

- o -

2) Association between pre-eclampsia and locally derived  
traffic-related air pollution: a retrospective cohort study

Gavin Pereira, Fatima Haggar, Antonia W Shand, Carol Bower, Angus  
Cook, Natasha Nassar

Elevated exposure to traffic-related air pollution in pregnancy was  
associated with increased risk of pre-eclampsia. Effect sizes were  
highest for elevated exposures in third trimester and among younger  
and older women, aboriginal women and women with diabetes.

J Epidemiol Community Health 2013;67:147-152  
doi:10.1136/jech-2011-200805 - read abstract  
(http://jech.bmj.com/content/67/2/147.abstract)

- o -

3) Epidemiological evidence on association between ambient air  
pollution and stroke mortality

Yifeng Qian, Meiying Zhu, Binxin Cai, Qing Yang, Haidong Kan, Guixiang  
Song, Wenzheng Jin, Ming Han, Chunfang Wang

Both total-stroke and ischaemic-stroke mortalities were found to be  
significantly associated with all three air pollutants (particles with  
size <10 µm, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide). Haemorrhagic stroke  
was significantly associated with SO2 and NO2 only. Substantial  
differences were observed for effect estimates of ischaemic-stroke  
mortality in relation to NO2 among people with cardiac diseases  
compared with those without; for an increase of 10 μg/m3 in NO2, the  
increase in ischaemic-stroke mortality was 7.05% (95% CI 1.92% to  
12.17%) for people with comorbid cardiac diseases versus 0.60% (95% CI  
−0.49% to 1.68%) for those without. We did not find evidence of effect  
modification by hypertension and diabetes. This study provides new  
evidence for the association between exposure to ambient air pollution  
and stroke mortality. Our results also suggest that underlying cardiac  
disorder may increase the risk for ischaemic-stroke mortality in  
relation to air pollution
exposure, especially NO2.

J Epidemiol Community Health 2013;67:635-640  
doi:10.1136/jech-2012-201096 - read abstract  
(http://jech.bmj.com/content/67/8/635.abstract)

- o -

4) Residential proximity to major roadways and renal function

Shih-Ho Lue, Gregory A Wellenius, Elissa H Wilker, Elizabeth  
Mostofsky, Murray A Mittleman

Patients living closer to a major roadway had lower eGFR (estimated  
glomerular filtration rate) than patients living farther away  
(Ptrend=0.01). Comparing patients living 50 m versus 1000 m from a  
major roadway was associated with a 3.9 ml/min/1.73 m2 lower eGFR (95%  
CI 1.0 to 6.7; p=0.007): a difference comparable in magnitude to the  
reduction in eGFR observed for a 4-year increase in age in  
population-based studies. The magnitude of this association did not  
differ significantly across categories of age, sex, race, history of  
hypertension, diabetes or socioeconomic status. Living near a major  
roadway is associated with lower eGFR in a cohort of patients  
presenting with acute ischaemic stroke. If causal, these results imply  
that exposures associated with living near a major roadway contribute  
to reduced renal function, an important risk factor for cardiovascular  
events.

J Epidemiol Community Health 2013;67:629-634  
doi:10.1136/jech-2012-202307 - read abstract  
(http://jech.bmj.com/content/67/8/629.abstract)

- o -

5) Acute nasal pro-inflammatory response to air pollution depends on  
characteristics other than particle mass concentration or oxidative  
potential: the RAPTES project

Maaike Steenhof, Ian S Mudway, Ilse Gosens, Gerard Hoek, Krystal J  
Godri, Frank J Kelly, Roy M Harrison, Raymond H H Pieters, Flemming R  
Cassee, Erik Lebret, Bert A Brunekreef, Maciej Strak, Nicole A H Janssen

In two-pollutant models, cytokines in NAL were positively associated  
with OC, endotoxin and NO2; protein was associated with NO2; and  
lactoferrin was associated with all PM characteristics that were high  
at the underground site. In blood, associations with OC and endotoxin  
were negative. We observed no consistent effects in two-pollutant  
models for PM mass concentration and OP. Instead, we found consistent  
associations with nasal inflammatory markers for other PM  
characteristics, specifically OC, endotoxin and NO2.
Occup Environ Med 2013;70:341-348 doi:10.1136/oemed-2012-100993 - read  
abstract (http://oem.bmj.com/content/70/5/341.abstract)

- o -

6) Components of ambient air pollution affect thrombin generation in  
healthy humans: the RAPTES project

Maciej Strak, Gerard Hoek, Maaike Steenhof, Evren Kilinc, Krystal J  
Godri, Ilse Gosens, Ian S Mudway, René van Oerle, Henri M H Spronk,  
Flemming R Cassee, Frank J Kelly, Roy M Harrison, Bert Brunekreef,  
Erik Lebret, Nicole A H Janssen

We found that thrombin generation increases in the intrinsic  
(FXII-mediated) blood coagulation pathway in relation to ambient air  
pollution exposure. The associations with NO2, nitrate and sulphate  
were consistent and robust, insensitive to adjustment for other  
pollutants. The associations with tissue factor-mediated  
thrombogenicity were not very consistent. Ex vivo thrombin generation  
was associated with exposure to NO2, nitrate and sulphate, but not PM  
mass, PM OP or other measured air pollutants.

Occup Environ Med 2013;70:332-340, doi:10.1136/oemed-2012-100992 -  
read abstract (http://oem.bmj.com/content/70/5/332.abstract)

- o -

7) Mortality Associations with Long-Term Exposure to Outdoor Air  
Pollution in a National English Cohort

Iain M. Carey, Richard W. Atkinson, Andrew J. Kent, Tjeerd van Staa,  
Derek G. Cook, H. Ross Anderson

These results strengthen the evidence linking long-term ambient air  
pollution exposure to increased all-cause mortality. However, the  
stronger associations with respiratory mortality are not consistent  
with most US studies in which associations with cardiovascular causes  
of death tend to predominate.

American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, 187, 11  
(2013), 1226-1233, doi: 10.1164/rccm.201210-1758OC - read abstract  
(http://www.atsjournals.org/doi/abs/10.1164/rccm.201210-1758OC#.UoN2-HDvzK0)

- o -

8) Fluctuations in air pollution give risk warning signals of asthma  
hospitalization
Nan-Hung Hsieh, Chung-Min Liao

The study showed that standard deviation of PM10 data was the most  
correlated indicators for asthma hospitalization for all age groups,  
particularly for elderly. The skewness of O3 data gives the highest  
correlation to adult asthmatics. The proposed regression model shows a  
better predictability in annual asthma hospitalization trends for  
pediatrics. Our results suggest that a set of statistical indicators  
inferred from time-series information of major air pollutants can  
provide advance risk warning signals in complex air pollution-asthma  
systems and aid in asthma management that depends heavily on  
monitoring the dynamics of asthma incidence and environmental stimuli.

Atmospheric Environment 75, August 2013, 206-216 - read abstract  
(http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/13522310/75)

- o -

9) Measurement of airborne concentrations of tire and road wear  
particles in urban and rural areas of France, Japan, and the United  
States

Julie M. Panko, Jennifer Chu, Marisa L. Kreider, Ken M. Unice

Results indicated that TRWP (tire and road wear particles)  
concentrations in the PM10 fraction were low with averages ranging  
from 0.05 to 0.70 μg m−3, representing an average PM10 contribution of  
0.84%. The TRWP concentration in air was associated with traffic load  
and population density, but the trend was not statistically  
significant. Further, significant differences across days were not  
observed. This study provides a robust dataset to understand potential  
human exposures to airborne TRWP

Atmospheric Environment 72, June 2013, 192-199 - read abstract  
(http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/13522310/72)

- o -

10) Assessment of toxic potential of primary and secondary  
particulates/aerosols from biodiesel vis-à-vis mineral diesel fuelled  
engine

Avinash Kumar Agarwal, Tarun Gupta, Neelabh Dixit, Pravesh Chandra Shukla
The toxicity and potential health hazards of exhaust particles were  
assessed using various parameters such as nanoparticle size and number  
distribution, surface area distribution, elemental and organic carbon  
content and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons adsorbed onto the  
particle surfaces, followed by toxic equivalent factor assessment. It  
was found that biodiesel particulate toxicity was considerably lower  
in comparison to mineral diesel.

Inhalation Toxicology May 2013, 25, 6, 325-332  
doi:10.3109/08958378.2013.782515 - read abstract  
(http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.3109/08958378.2013.782515)

- o -

11) Nitrogen dioxide is genotoxic in urban concentrations

Christian Koehler, Sebastian Thielen, Christian Ginzkey, Stephan  
Hackenberg, Agmal Scherzed, Marc Burghartz, Michael Paulus, Rudolf  
Hagen, Norbert Helmut Kleinsasser

Micronucleus induction as a sign of genotoxicity at an exposure  
duration of 3 h could be shown. Shorter exposures did not induce  
micronucleus formation. In summary, genotoxicity of NO2 could be  
demonstrated at a common urban concentration in vitro, but a threshold  
of NO2 genotoxicity could not be defined based on the present  
experiments.

Inhalation Toxicology May 2013, 25, 6, 341-347,  
doi:10.3109/08958378.2013.788104 - read abstract  
(http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.3109/08958378.2013.788104)

- o -

12) Early lung development: lifelong effect on respiratory health and disease

Janet Stocks, Alison Hislop, Samatha Sonnappa

Healthy lung development is essential for maximum lung health in  
adulthood, but can be adversely affected by several events during the  
intrauterine period and early postnatal life. A better understanding  
of the long-term effects of early life factors on subsequent  
development of respiratory disease is imperative for appropriate  
preventive and management strategies to reduce the burden of chronic  
respiratory disease. Physicians need to enquire about prenatal and  
perinatal history, recognise lung disease that is potentially  
associated with prematurity and other early life insults, and offer  
long-term monitoring and advice to susceptible adults about the  
preservation of existing lung reserves.

The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, 1, 9, 728 - 742, November 2013,  
doi:10.1016/S2213-2600(13)70118-8 - read article  
(http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanres/article/PIIS2213-2600(13)70118-8/fulltext#article_upsell)

- o -

13) Effects of air pollution on fetal development—more than low birthweight?

Jonathan Grigg

Overall, maternal exposure to traffic-derived particulate matter  
probably increases vulnerability of their offspring to a wide range of  
respiratory disorders in both infancy and later life. Should pregnant  
women therefore act to reduce their own exposure to particulate  
matter? Small changes in behaviour—eg, avoidance of pollution hotspots  
such as those around road junctions—might significantly reduce  
individual exposure to traffic-derived particulate matter. However,  
until the determinants of individual exposure to particulate matter  
within cities are clearly defined, no specific advice to pregnant  
women should be given. In 2014, the effects of air pollution on fetal  
and infant respiratory health will be reviewed by a UK Royal College  
of Physicians Working Party on air quality and life effects. The  
challenge for this group and other academic committees is to present  
data for the effects of air pollution on fetal health so that they  
drive policy change, but do not increase the anxiety of individual  
women.

The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, 1, 9, 666 - 667, November 2013 - read  
article  
(http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanres/article/PIIS2213-2600(13)70219-4/fulltext?_eventId=login)

- o -

14) The carcinogenicity of outdoor air pollution

Dana Loomis, Yann Grosse, Béatrice Lauby-Secretan, Fatiha El  
Ghissassi, Véronique Bouvard, Lamia Benbrahim-Tallaa, Neela Guha,  
Robert Baan, Heidi Mattock, Kurt Straif, on behalf of the  
International Agency for Research on Cancer Monograph Working Group  
IARC, Lyon, France

In October, 2013, 24 experts from 11 countries met at the  
International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), Lyon, France, to  
assess the carcinogenicity of outdoor air pollution. The IARC Working  
Group unanimously classified outdoor air pollution and particulate  
matter from outdoor air pollution as carcinogenic to humans. The  
Working Group concluded that there is strong evidence that real-world  
exposures to outdoor air pollution, in several species, are associated  
with increases in genetic damage, including cytogenetic abnormalities,  
mutations in both somatic and germ cells, and altered gene expression,  
which have been linked to increased cancer risk in humans.

The Lancet Oncology, Early Online Publication, 24 October 2013,  
doi:10.1016/S1470-2045(13)70487-X - read article  
(http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanonc/article/PIIS1470-2045(13)70487-X/fulltext?_eventId=login)

- o -

15) Ambient air pollution and low birthweight: a European cohort study  
(ESCAPE)

Marie Pedersen, Lise Giorgis-Allemand, Claire Bernard, Inmaculada  
Aguilera, Anne-Marie Nybo Andersen, Ferran Ballester, Rob M J Beelen,  
Leda Chatzi, Marta Cirach, Asta Danileviciute, Audrius Dedele, Manon  
van Eijsden, Marisa Estarlich, Ana Fernández-Somoano, Mariana F  
Fernández, Francesco Forastiere, Ulrike Gehring, Regina  
Grazuleviciene, Olena Gruzieva, Barbara Heude, Gerard Hoek, Kees de  
Hoogh, Edith H van den Hooven, Siri E Håberg, Vincent W V Jaddoe,  
Claudia Klümper, Michal Korek, Ursula Krämer, Aitana Lerchundi,  
Johanna Lepeule, Per Nafstad, Wenche Nystad, Evridiki Patelarou,  
Daniela Porta, Dirkje Postma, Ole Raaschou-Nielsen, Peter Rudnai,  
Jordi Sunyer, Euripides Stephanou, Mette Sørensen, Elisabeth Thiering,  
Derek Tuffnell, Mihály J Varró, Tanja G M Vrijkotte, Alet Wijga,  
Michael Wilhelm, John Wright, Mark J Nieuwenhuijsen, Göran Pershagen,  
Bert Brunekreef, Manolis Kogevinas, Rémy Slama

Exposure to ambient air pollutants and traffic during pregnancy is  
associated with restricted fetal growth. A substantial proportion of  
cases of low birthweight at term could be prevented in Europe if urban  
air pollution was reduced.

The Lancet Respiratory,  1, 9, 695 - 704, November 2013, published  
online October 2013, 12pp including commentary - read articles  
(http://www.creal.cat/media/upload/pdf//birthweight_editora_23_255_2.pdf)

- o -

16) Air pollution and childhood leukaemia: a nationwide case-control  
study in Italy

C Badaloni, A Ranucci, G Cesaroni, G Zanini, D Vienneau, F Al-Aidrous,  
K De Hoogh, C Magnani, F Forastiere, on behalf of the SETIL Study Group

Overall, when considering the residence at birth, 35.6% of cases and  
42.4% of controls lived along busy roads, and the mean annual PM10  
levels were 33.3 (SD=6.3) and 33.4 µg/m3 (SD=6.5), respectively. No  
association was found, and all ORs, independent of the method of  
assessment and the exposure windows, were close to the null value.  
Using various exposure assessment strategies, air pollution appears  
not to affect the incidence of childhood leukaemia.

Occup Environ Med 2013;70:876-883 - read abstract  
(http://oem.bmj.com/content/70/12/876.abstract.html?etoc)

- o -

17) Associations between ambient air pollution and gestational  
hypertension in a nova scotia pregnancy cohort

A Poirier, L Dodds, M Johnson, T Dummer, D Rainham

Both long-term and short-term exposure to ambient air pollution have  
been linked with increased risk for cardiovascular morbidity and  
mortality. However, few studies have examined possible associations  
between air pollution and gestational hypertension. Gestational  
hypertensive disorders are a leading cause of perinatal and maternal  
mortality, accounting for 2-8% of all pregnancy complications. The  
current study will examine associations between ambient air pollution  
and gestational hypertension in Halifax, Nova Scotia, using a  
retrospective cohort design. Information on gestational hypertension  
will be provided by the Nova Scotia Perinatal Atlee database which  
includes approximately 5,000 births per year from 1988 onward. Air  
pollution will be assessed using land-use regression (LUR) models and  
regulatory monitoring data collected by the National Air Pollution  
Surveillance (NAPS) network. LUR modeling will provide household level  
estimates of maternal exposure, while NAPS data will be used to assess  
pollution concentrations at the community level for the study period.  
Air pollution data will be linked to the Perinatal Database based on  
six-digit postal code (LUR) and date (NAPS) in order to estimate the  
risk of developing gestational hypertension. The results of this study  
will help to characterize risks associated with exposure to air  
pollution during pregnancy.

Abstract from The Canadian Society for Epidemiology and Biostatistics  
2013 National Student Conference, published in Am. J. Epidemiol.  
(2013) 178 (10): 1588-1590 - read all abstracts  
(http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/content/178/10/1588.abstract.html?etoc)

- o -

18) Observational approaches in the study of the effects of Total  
Suspended Particulates (TSP) exposure

Giuseppe Migliaretti, Paola Berchialla

The principal aim of this research was to compare the estimated risks  
obtained by differing approaches based on the same population study in  
the period 2006–2009. The results seem to indicate that the different  
approaches studied seem to offer comparable results.

International Journal of Environmental Health Research, 23, 5, 2013,  
392-399 - read abstract  
(http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09603123.2012.743113#.UoNfPHDvzK0)

- o -

19) Aircraft noise and cardiovascular disease near Heathrow airport in  
London: small area study

Anna L Hansell, , Marta Blangiardo, Lea Fortunato, Sarah Floud, Kees  
de Hoogh, Daniela Fecht, Rebecca E Ghosh, Helga E Laszlo, Clare  
Pearson, Linda Beale, Sean Beevers, John Gulliver, Nicky Best, Sylvia  
Richardson, Paul Elliott

High levels of aircraft noisewere associatedwith increased risks of  
stroke, coronary heart disease, and cardiovascular disease for both  
hospital admissions and mortality in areas near Heathrow airport in  
London. As well as the possibility of causal associations, alternative  
explanations such as residual confounding and potential for ecological  
bias should be considered.

BMJ 2013;347:f5432 doi: 10.1136/bmj.f5432 (Published 8 October 2013)  
10pp - read article  
(http://www.bmj.com/content/347/bmj.f5432.pdf%2Bhtml)

20) Aircraft noise and health

Joel C Corbin

PM0.1 particles from aircraft may increase risk of vascular disease.  
Hansell and colleagues reported an association between exposure to  
aircraft noise and increased risks of stroke, coronary heart disease,  
and cardiovascular disease in areas close to Heathrow airport. They  
considered several confounding variables, including air pollution.  
However, air pollution was represented by PM10—the mass concentration  
of suspended particles smaller than 10 μm—which does not reflect air  
pollution from aircraft. Aircraft emit PM0.1 particles ...

LETTER in BMJ 2013; 347 doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmj.f6783  
(Published 19 November 2013) BMJ 2013;347:f6783 - BMA members can read  
full article (http://www.bmj.com/content/347/bmj.f6783?etoc=)

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Compiler and Editor: Barbara Rimmington, Researcher, East End Quality
of Life Initiative

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