Air pollution and noise pollution up heart disease risk

Both fine-particle air pollution and noise pollution may increase a person's risk of developing cardiovascular disease, according to a new study.
German researchers conducted a large population study, in which both factors were considered simultaneously.
"Many studies have looked at air pollution, while others have looked at noise pollution," said study leader Barbara Hoffmann, a professor of environmental epidemiology at the IUF Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine in Germany.
"This study looked at both at the same time and found that each form of pollution was independently associated with subclinical atherosclerosis," Hoffmann said.
Using data from the Heinz Nixdorf Recall study, an ongoing population study from three neighbouring cities in the Ruhr region of Germany, Hoffmann and her colleagues assessed the long-term exposure to fine particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter less than 2.5 micrometres and long-term exposure to traffic noise in 4,238 study participants (mean age 60 years, 49.9 per cent male).

The exposure to air pollutants was calculated using the European Air Pollution Disperson, or EURAD, model.

Exposure to traffic noise was calculated using European Union models of outdoor traffic noise levels. These levels were quantified as weighted 24-hour mean exposure (Lden) and nighttime exposure (Lnight).
To determine the association of the two variables with cardiovascular risk, the researchers looked at thoracic aortic calcification (TAC), a measure of subclinical atherosclerosis.
The researchers found that fine-particle air pollution was associated with an increase in TAC burden by 19.9 per cent per 2.4 microgrammes per cubic metre.
The researchers also found that nighttime traffic noise pollution increased TAC burden by 8 per cent per 5 decibel.

Mean exposure to traffic noise over 24 hours was not associated with increased TAC, the study found.
The study will be presented at the American Thoracic Society 2013 International Conference in Philadelphia.