The impact of measurement error in modelled ambient particles exposures on health effect estimates in multi-level analysis: a simulation study.

Background: Various spatiotemporal models have been proposed for predicting ambient particulate exposure for inclusion in epidemiological analyses. We investigated the effect of measurement error in the prediction of particulate matter with diameter <10 µm (PM10) and <2.5 µm (PM2.5) concentrations on the estimation of health effects. Methods: We sampled 1,000 small administrative areas in London, United Kingdom, and simulated the “true” underlying daily exposure surfaces for PM10 and PM2.5 for 2009–2013 incorporating temporal variation and spatial covariance informed by the extensive London monitoring network. We added measurement error assessed by comparing measurements at fixed sites and predictions from spatiotemporal land-use regression (LUR) models; dispersion models; models using satellite data and applying machine learning algorithms; and combinations of these methods through generalized additive models. Two health outcomes were simulated to assess whether the bias varies with the effect size. We applied multilevel Poisson regression to simultaneously model the effect of long- and short-term pollutant exposure. For each scenario, we ran 1,000 simulations to assess measurement error impact on health effect estimation. Results: For long-term exposure to particles, we observed bias toward the null, except for traffic PM2.5 for which only LUR underestimated the effect. For short-term exposure, results were variable between exposure models and bias ranged from −11% (underestimate) to 20% (overestimate) for PM10 and of −20% to 17% for PM2.5. Integration of models performed best in almost all cases. Conclusions: No single exposure model performed optimally across scenarios. In most cases, measurement error resulted in attenuation of the effect estimate

Acute effects of night-time noise exposure on blood pressure in populations living near airports

AIMS: Within the framework of the HYENA (hypertension and exposure to noise near airports) project we investigated the effect of short-term changes of transportation or indoor noise levels on blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR) during night-time sleep in 140 subjects living near four major European airports. METHODS AND RESULTS: Non-invasive ambulatory BP measurements at 15 min intervals were performed. Noise was measured during the night sleeping period and recorded digitally for the identification of the source of a noise event. Exposure variables included equivalent noise level over 1 and 15 min and presence/absence of event (with LAmax > 35 dB) before each BP measurement. Random effects models for repeated measurements were applied. An increase in BP (6.2 mmHg (0.63-12) for systolic and 7.4 mmHg (3.1, 12) for diastolic) was observed over 15 min intervals in which an aircraft event occurred. A non-significant increase in HR was also observed (by 5.4 b.p.m.). Less consistent effects were observed on HR. When the actual maximum noise level of an event was assessed there were no systematic differences in the effects according to the noise source. CONCLUSION: Effects of noise exposure on elevated subsequent BP measurements were clearly shown. The effect size of the noise level appears to be independent of the noise source

Improvements in sperm motility following low or high intensity dietary interventions in men with obesity

Introduction: Obesity increases risks of male infertility, but bariatric surgery does not improve semen quality. Recent uncontrolled studies suggest that a low-energy diet (LED) improves semen quality. Further evaluation within a randomized, controlled setting is warranted. Methods: Men with obesity (18-60 years) with normal sperm concentration (normal count) (n = 24) or oligozoospermia (n = 43) were randomized 1:1 to either 800 kcal/day LED for 16 weeks or control, brief dietary intervention (BDI) with 16 weeks’ observation. Semen parameters were compared at baseline and 16 weeks. Results: Mean age of men with normal count was 39.4 ± 6.4 in BDI and 40.2 ± 9.6 years in the LED group. Mean age of men with oligozoospermia was 39.5 ± 7.5 in BDI and 37.7 ± 6.6 years in the LED group. LED caused more weight loss than BDI in men with normal count (14.4 vs 6.3 kg; P < .001) and men with oligozoospermia (17.6 vs 1.8 kg; P < .001). Compared with baseline, in men with normal count total motility (TM) increased 48 ± 17% to 60 ± 10% (P < .05) after LED, and 52 ± 8% to 61 ± 6% (P < .0001) after BDI; progressive motility (PM) increased 41 ± 16% to 53 ± 10% (P < .05) after LED, and 45 ± 8% to 54 ± 65% (P < .001) after BDI. In men with oligozoospermia compared with baseline, TM increased 35% [26] to 52% [16] (P < .05) after LED, and 43% [28] to 50% [23] (P = .0587) after BDI; PM increased 29% [23] to 46% [18] (P < .05) after LED, and 33% [25] to 44% [25] (P < .05) after BDI. No differences in postintervention TM or PM were observed between LED and BDI groups in men with normal count or oligozoospermia. Conclusion: LED or BDI may be sufficient to improve sperm motility in men with obesity. The effects of paternal dietary intervention on fertility outcomes requires investigation

Predicting fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in the Greater London area: an ensemble approach using machine learning methods

Estimating air pollution exposure has long been a challenge for environmental health researchers. Technological advances and novel machine learning methods have allowed us to increase the geographic range and accuracy of exposure models, making them a valuable tool in conducting health studies and identifying hotspots of pollution. Here, we have created a prediction model for daily PM2.5 levels in the Greater London area from 1st January 2005 to 31st December 2013 using an ensemble machine learning approach incorporating satellite aerosol optical depth (AOD), land use, and meteorological data. The predictions were made on a 1 km × 1 km scale over 3960 grid cells. The ensemble included predictions from three different machine learners: a random forest (RF), a gradient boosting machine (GBM), and a k-nearest neighbor (KNN) approach. Our ensemble model performed very well, with a ten-fold cross-validated R2 of 0.828. Of the three machine learners, the random forest outperformed the GBM and KNN. Our model was particularly adept at predicting day-to-day changes in PM2.5 levels with an out-of-sample temporal R2 of 0.882. However, its ability to predict spatial variability was weaker, with a R2 of 0.396. We believe this to be due to the smaller spatial variation in pollutant levels in this area

Annoyance due to aircraft noise has increased over the years--results of the HYENA study

In the HYENA study (HYpertension and Exposure to Noise near Airports) noise annoyances due to aircraft and road traffic noise were assessed in subjects that lived in the vicinity of 6 major European airports using the 11-point ICBEN scale (International Commission on Biological Effects of Noise). A distinction was made between the annoyance during the day and during the night. L(den) and L(night) were considered as indicators of noise exposure. Pooled data analyses showed clear exposure-response relationships between the noise level and the noise annoyance for both exposures. The exposure-response curves for road noise were congruent with the EU standard curves used for predicting the number of highly noise annoyed subjects in European communities. Annoyance ratings due to aircraft noise, however, were higher than predicted by the EU standard curves. The data supports other findings suggesting that the people's attitude towards aircraft noise has changed over the years, and that the EU standard curve for aircraft noise should be modified

Voluntary self-poisoning as a cause of admission to a tertiary hospital internal medicine clinic in Piraeus, Greece within a year

BACKGROUND: Out of 1705 patients hospitalised for various reasons in the 3(rd) Internal Medicine Department of the Regional General Hospital of Nikaea, in Piraeus, 146(8,5%) persons were admitted for drug intoxication between November 1999 and November 2000. METHODS: On average, these persons [male 50(34,2%) – female 96(65,8%)] were admitted to the hospital within 3.7 hours after taking the drug. RESULTS: The drugs that were more frequently taken, alone or in combination with other drugs, were sedatives (67.1%), aspirins and analgesics (mainly paracetamol) (43.5%). 38.3% of patients had a mental illness history, 31.5% were in need of psychiatric help and 45.2% had made a previous suicide attempt. No death occurred during the above period and the outcome of the patients' health was normal. After mental state examination, the mental illnesses diagnosed were depression (20.96%), psychosis (15.32%), dysthymic disorder (16,2%), anxiety disorder (22.58%) and personality disorder (8.87%). CONCLUSIONS: Self-poisoning remains a crucial problem. The use of paracetamol and sedatives are particularly important in the population studied. Interpersonal psychiatric therapy may be a valuable treatment after people tried to poison themselves

Hypertension and exposure to noise near airports: the HYENA study

BACKGROUND: An increasing number of people are exposed to aircraft and road traffic noise. Hypertension is an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease, and even a small contribution in risk from environmental factors may have a major impact on public health. OBJECTIVES: The HYENA (Hypertension and Exposure to Noise near Airports) study aimed to assess the relations between noise from aircraft or road traffic near airports and the risk of hypertension. METHODS: We measured blood pressure and collected data on health, socioeconomic, and lifestyle factors, including diet and physical activity, via questionnaire at home visits for 4,861 persons 45-70 years of age, who had lived at least 5 years near any of six major European airports. We assessed noise exposure using detailed models with a resolution of 1 dB (5 dB for United Kingdom road traffic noise), and a spatial resolution of 250 x 250 m for aircraft and 10 x 10 m for road traffic noise. RESULTS: We found significant exposure-response relationships between night-time aircraft as well as average daily road traffic noise exposure and risk of hypertension after adjustment for major confounders. For night-time aircraft noise, a 10-dB increase in exposure was associated with an odds ratio (OR) of 1.14 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.01-1.29]. The exposure-response relationships were similar for road traffic noise and stronger for men with an OR of 1.54 (95% CI, 0.99-2.40) in the highest exposure category (> 65 dB; p(trend) = 0.008). CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate excess risks of hypertension related to long-term noise exposure, primarily for night-time aircraft noise and daily average road traffic noise

Spatio-temporal associations of air pollutant concentrations, GP respiratory consultations and respiratory inhaler prescriptions: a 5-year study of primary care in the borough of Lambeth, South London.

BACKGROUND: Although the associations of outdoor air pollution exposure with mortality and hospital admissions are well established, few previous studies have reported on primary care clinical and prescribing data. We assessed the associations of short and long-term pollutant exposures with General Practitioner respiratory consultations and inhaler prescriptions. METHODS: Daily primary care data, for 2009-2013, were obtained from Lambeth DataNet (LDN), an anonymised dataset containing coded data from all patients (1.2 million) registered at general practices in Lambeth, an inner-city south London borough. Counts of respiratory consultations and inhaler prescriptions by day and Lower Super Output Area (LSOA) of residence were constructed. We developed models for predicting daily PM2.5, PM10, NO2 and O3 per LSOA. We used spatio-temporal mixed effects zero inflated negative binomial models to investigate the simultaneous short- and long-term effects of exposure to pollutants on the number of events. RESULTS: The mean concentrations of NO2, PM10, PM2.5 and O3 over the study period were 50.7, 21.2, 15.6, and 49.9 μg/m3 respectively, with all pollutants except NO2 having much larger temporal rather than spatial variability. Following short-term exposure increases to PM10, NO2 and PM2.5 the number of consultations and inhaler prescriptions were found to increase, especially for PM10 exposure in children which was associated with increases in daily respiratory consultations of 3.4% and inhaler prescriptions of 0.8%, per PM10 interquartile range (IQR) increase. Associations further increased after adjustment for weekly average exposures, rising to 6.1 and 1.2%, respectively, for weekly average PM10 exposure. In contrast, a short-term increase in O3 exposure was associated with decreased number of respiratory consultations. No association was found between long-term exposures to PM10, PM2.5 and NO2 and number of respiratory consultations. Long-term exposure to NO2 was associated with an increase (8%) in preventer inhaler prescriptions only. CONCLUSIONS: We found increases in the daily number of GP respiratory consultations and inhaler prescriptions following short-term increases in exposure to NO2, PM10 and PM2.5. These associations are more pronounced in children and persist for at least a week. The association with long term exposure to NO2 and preventer inhaler prescriptions indicates likely increased chronic respiratory morbidity

Variation of NO2 and NOx concentrations between and within 36 European study areas: Results from the ESCAPE study

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Особливості державного регулювання інвестиційно-інноваційної діяльності, в сфері екології

BACKGROUND: Particulate matter (PM) air pollution is a human lung carcinogen; however, the components responsible have not been identified. We assessed the associations between PM components and lung cancer incidence. METHODS: We used data from 14 cohort studies in eight European countries. We geocoded baseline addresses and assessed air pollution with land-use regression models for eight elements (Cu, Fe, K, Ni, S, Si, V and Zn) in size fractions of PM2.5 and PM10. We used Cox regression models with adjustment for potential confounders for cohort-specific analyses and random effect models for meta-analysis. RESULTS: The 245,782 cohort members contributed 3,229,220 person-years at risk. During follow-up (mean, 13.1 years), 1878 incident cases of lung cancer were diagnosed. In the meta-analyses, elevated hazard ratios (HRs) for lung cancer were associated with all elements except V; none was statistically significant. In analyses restricted to participants who did not change residence during follow-up, statistically significant associations were found for PM2.5 Cu (HR, 1.25; 95% CI, 1.01-1.53 per 5 ng/m(3)), PM10 Zn (1.28; 1.02-1.59 per 20 ng/m(3)), PM10 S (1.58; 1.03-2.44 per 200 ng/m(3)), PM10 Ni (1.59; 1.12-2.26 per 2 ng/m(3)) and PM10 K (1.17; 1.02-1.33 per 100 ng/m(3)). In two-pollutant models, associations between PM10 and PM2.5 and lung cancer were largely explained by PM2.5 S. CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates that the association between PM in air pollution and lung cancer can be attributed to various PM components and sources. PM containing S and Ni might be particularly important