Long-Term Exposure to Traffic-Related Air Pollution and the Risk of Coronary Heart Disease Hospitalization and Mortality

• Published in: Environmental health perspectives Vol. 119; no. 4; pp. 501 - 507
• Main Authors: Gan, Wen Qi, Koehoorn, Mieke, Davies, Hugh W., Demers, Paul A., Tamburic, Lillian, Brauer, Michael
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Research Triangle Park, NC National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences 01.04.2011; US Department of Health and Human Services
• Subjects: Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Air; Air pollutants; Air Pollutants - analysis; Air pollution; Air Pollution - statistics & numerical data; Biological and medical sciences; Black carbon; Carbon; Cardiology. Vascular system; Cardiovascular diseases; Comorbidity; Congenital heart defects; Coronary artery disease; Coronary Disease - epidemiology; Coronary Disease - mortality; Coronary heart disease; Environment. Living conditions; Environmental Exposure - analysis; Environmental Exposure - statistics & numerical data; Environmental Monitoring; Environmental policy; Environmental pollutants toxicology; Epidemiological Monitoring; Female; Health aspects; Heart; Heart diseases; Hospitalization; Hospitalization - statistics & numerical data; Humans; Land use; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Mortality; Nitric oxide; Nitrogen dioxide; Nitrogen Dioxide - analysis; Nitrogen Oxides - analysis; Particulate Matter - analysis; Pollutants; Public health. Hygiene; Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine; Risk; Risk Assessment; Risk factors; Roads; Socioeconomic status; Socioeconomics; Soot - analysis; Toxicology; Traffic; Traffic engineering; Traffic flow; Transportation - statistics & numerical data; Canada; Canada, British Columbia, Vancouver; Human; Mortality; Cardiovascular disease; Risk; Exposure; Hospitalization; Coronary heart disease; Epidemiology; Long term; Suspended particle; particulate matter; Health and environment; vehicle emissions; Cohort study; Risk factor; cohort studies; Air pollution; Exhaust gas; Road traffic; Public health
• ISSN: 0091-6765; 1552-9924; 1552-9924
• DOI: 10.1289/ehp.1002511

Background: Epidemiologie studies have demonstrated that exposure to road traffic is associated with adverse cardiovascular outcomes. Objectives: We aimed to identify specific traffic-related air pollutants that are associated with the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) morbidity and mortality to support evidence-based environmental policy making. Methods: This population-based cohort study included a 5-year exposure period and a 4-year follow-up period. All residents 45-85 years of age who resided in Metropolitan Vancouver during the exposure period and without known CHD at baseline were included in this study (n = 452,735). Individual exposures to traffic-related air pollutants including black carbon, fine particles [aerodynamic diameter ≤ 2.5 μm (PM2.5)], nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), and nitric oxide were estimated at residences of the subjects using land-use regression models and integrating changes in residences during the exposure period. CHD hospitalizations and deaths during the follow-up period were identified from provincial hospitalization and death registration records. Results: An interquartile range elevation in the average concentration of black carbon (0.94 × 10⁻⁵/m filter absorbance, equivalent to approximately 0.8 ug/m 3 elemental carbon) was associated with a 3% increase in CHD hospitalization (95% confidence interval, 1-5%) and a 6% increase in CHD mortality (3-9%) after adjusting for age, sex, preexisting comorbidity, neighborhood socioeconomic status, and copollutants (PM2.5 and NO₂). There were clear linear exposure-response relationships between black carbon and coronary events. Conclusions: Long-term exposure to traffic-related fine participate air pollution, indicated by black carbon, may partly explain the observed associations between exposure to road traffic and adverse cardiovascular outcomes.