Exposure to Road Traffic Noise and Incidence of Acute Myocardial Infarction and Congestive Heart Failure: A Population-Based Cohort Study in Toronto, Canada
- DOI
- Language of the publication
- English
- Date
- 2020-08-12
- Type
- Article
- Author(s)
- Bai, Li
- Shin, Saeha
- Oiamo, Tor H.
- Burnett, Richard T.
- Weichenthal, Scott
- Jerrett, Michael
- Kwong, Jeffrey C.
- Copes, Ray
- Kopp, Alexander
- Chen, Hong
- Publisher
- National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)
Abstract
Background: Epidemiological evidence for the association between traffic-related noise and the incidence of major cardiovascular events such as acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and congestive heart failure (CHF) is inconclusive, especially in North America. Objectives: We evaluated the associations between long-term exposure to road traffic noise and the incidence of AMI and CHF. Methods: Our study population comprised people 30–100 years of age who lived in Toronto, Canada, from 2001 to 2015 and were free of AMI (referred to as the AMI cohort) or CHF (the CHF cohort) at baseline. Outcomes were ascertained from health administrative databases using validated algorithms. Annual average noise levels were estimated as the A-weighted equivalent sound pressure level over the 24-h period (LAeq24) and during nighttime (LAeqNight), respectively, using propagation modeling, and assigned to participants’ annual six-digit postal code addresses during follow-up. We calculated hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for incident AMI and CHF in relation to LAeq24 and LAeqNight using random-effects Cox proportional hazards models adjusting for individual- and census tract–level covariates, including traffic-related air pollutants [e.g., ultrafine particles (UFPs) and nitrogen dioxide]. Results: During follow-up, there were 37,441 AMI incident cases and 95,138 CHF incident cases. Each interquartile range change in LAeq24 was associated with an increased risk of incident AMI (HR=1.07; 95% CI: 1.06, 1.08) and CHF (HR=1.07; 95% CI: 1.06, 1.09). Similarly, LAeqNight was associated with incident AMI (HR=1.07; 95% CI: 1.05, 1.08) and CHF (HR=1.06; 95% CI: 1.05, 1.07). These results were robust to various sensitivity analyses and remained elevated after controlling for long-term exposure to UFPs and nitrogen dioxide. We found near-linear relationships between noise and the incidence of AMI and CHF with no evidence of threshold values. Conclusion: In this large cohort study in Toronto, Canada, chronic exposure to road traffic noise was associated with elevated risks for AMI and CHF incidence.
Plain language summary
"Under the mandate to improve the health of Canadians, Health Canada conducts scientific research to evaluate the health impacts of environmental risk factors. Exposure to traffic related noise has been hypothesized to provoke a wide range of harmful subclinical responses in humans. Although a small number of epidemiological studies have reported a link between traffic noise and the incidence of myocardial infarction and heart failure, the evidence is inconclusive. As most of these studies were conducted in Europe, whether these associations persist in North America where architectural and urban design settings often differ from that in Europe remains unclear. Health Canada has collaborated with researchers from other organizations to investigate the associations between traffic noise and incidence of acute myocardial infarction and congestive heart failure. In this study, a population-based cohort comprising about 1 million long-term residents in the city of Toronto was followed from 2001 to 2015. The occurrence of myocardial infarction and heart failure were established from data linkage to the Ontario Myocardial Infarction Database and the Ontario Congestive Heart Failure Database, respectively in the province. Increased risks for developing myocardial infarction and heart failure were found in association with prolonged exposure to noise, with a 7% higher risk for both outcomes after adjusting for various covariates including traffic air pollution (ultrafine particles and nitrogen dioxide). These results suggest that exposure to road traffic noise was independently associated with increased incidence of myocardial infarction and heart failure in Toronto."
Subject
- Health,
- Health and safety