Use of a total traffic count metric to investigate the impact of roadways on asthma severity: a case-control study
| Autor: | Philip Weinstein, Andrew Jardine, Angus Cook, Annemarie J B M deVos, Gavin Pereira |
|---|---|
| Přispěvatelé: | Health Services Management & Organisation (HSMO), Cook, Angus G, deVos, Annemarie JBM, Pereira, Gavin, Jardine, Andrew, Weinstein, Philip |
| Jazyk: | angličtina |
| Rok vydání: | 2011 |
| Předmět: |
Male
business.product_category Urban Population Health Toxicology and Mutagenesis Poison control Residence Characteristics Odds Ratio Child Vehicle Emissions Air Pollutants atmospheric pollution lcsh:Public aspects of medicine Environmental exposure GIS Traffic count Child Preschool Epidemiological Monitoring lcsh:Industrial medicine. Industrial hygiene disease severity health impact Female Medical emergency Risk assessment Emergency Service Hospital age class Environmental Monitoring Adolescent Risk Assessment Young Adult lcsh:RC963-969 Environmental health medicine Humans Asthma Exposure assessment business.industry Research Public Health Environmental and Occupational Health Infant Newborn Infant lcsh:RA1-1270 Odds ratio Emergency department Environmental Exposure Western Australia asthma medicine.disease Case-Control Studies Geographic Information Systems business |
| Zdroj: | Environmental Health, Vol 10, Iss 1, p 52 (2011) Environmental Health, 10(52), 1-8. BioMed Central Ltd. Environmental Health |
| ISSN: | 1476-069X |
| Popis: | Background This study had two principal objectives: (i) to investigate the relationship between asthma severity and proximity to major roadways in Perth, Western Australia; (ii) to demonstrate a more accurate method of exposure assessment for traffic pollutants using an innovative GIS-based measure that fully integrates all traffic densities around subject residences. Methods We conducted a spatial case-control study, in which 'cases' were defined as individuals aged under 19 years of age with more severe asthma (defined here as two or more emergency department contacts with asthma in a defined 5-year period) versus age- and gender-matched 'controls' with less severe asthma (defined here as one emergency department contact for asthma). Traffic exposures were measured using a GIS-based approach to determine the lengths of the roads falling within a buffer area, and then multiplying them by their respective traffic counts. Results We examined the spatial relationship between emergency department contacts for asthma at three different buffer sizes: 50 metres, 100 metres and 150 metres. No effect was noted for the 50 metre buffer (OR = 1.07; 95% CI: 0.91-1.26), but elevated odds ratios were observed with for crude (unadjusted) estimates OR = 1.21 (95% CI: 1.00-1.46) for 100 metre buffers and OR = 1.25 (95% CI: 1.02-1.54) for 150 metre buffers. For adjusted risk estimates, only the 150 metre buffer yielded a statistically significant finding (OR = 1.24; 95% CI:1.00-1.52). Conclusions Our study revealed a significant 24% increase in the risk of experiencing multiple emergency department contacts for asthma for every log-unit of traffic exposure. This study provides support for the hypothesis that traffic related air pollution increases the frequency of health service contacts for asthma. This study used advanced GIS techniques to establish traffic-weighted buffer zones around the geocoded residential location of subjects to provide an accurate assessment of exposure to traffic emissions, thereby providing a quantification of the ranges over which pollutants may exert a health effect. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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