Traffic exposure associated with allergic asthma and allergic rhinitis in adults. A cross-sectional study in southern Sweden.
Lindgren, Anna LU ; Stroh, Emilie LU
; Nihlén, Ulf
LU
; Montnemery, Peter
LU
; Axmon, Anna
LU
and Jakobsson, Kristina
LU
(2009)
In International Journal of Health Geographics
8(May 6).
- Abstract
- BACKGROUND: There is conflicting evidence that traffic-related air pollution is a risk factor for allergic conditions. Few studies have investigated this in adults. In adults, a high proportion of asthma, rhinitis and eczema is triggered by non-allergic factors. We investigated traffic as a risk factor for allergic versus non-allergic asthma and rhinitis, and eczema, in adults. A questionnaire from 2000 (n = 9319, 18-77 years) provided individual data about disease outcome and self-reported traffic exposure. Additional exposure assessments were obtained using Geographical Informations Systems (GIS). Residential addresses were linked to the national Swedish Road Database and to a pollutant database with modelled annual means of NOx... (More)
- BACKGROUND: There is conflicting evidence that traffic-related air pollution is a risk factor for allergic conditions. Few studies have investigated this in adults. In adults, a high proportion of asthma, rhinitis and eczema is triggered by non-allergic factors. We investigated traffic as a risk factor for allergic versus non-allergic asthma and rhinitis, and eczema, in adults. A questionnaire from 2000 (n = 9319, 18-77 years) provided individual data about disease outcome and self-reported traffic exposure. Additional exposure assessments were obtained using Geographical Informations Systems (GIS). Residential addresses were linked to the national Swedish Road Database and to a pollutant database with modelled annual means of NOx (Nitrogen Oxids). RESULTS: Living within 100 m from a road with a traffic intensity of >10 cars/min (24 hour mean) was associated with prevalence of current asthma reported to be triggered by allergic factors (OR = 1.83, 95% CI = 1.23-2.72) and with allergic rhinitis (OR = 1.30, 95%CI = (1.05-1.61). No relation was seen with asthma or rhinitis triggered by other factors. Living within 100 m of a road with >10 cars/min was also associated with hand-eczema during the last 12 months (OR = 1.63, 95% CI = 1.19-2.23), but not with allergic eczema or diagnosed hand-eczema. Consistent results were seen using self-reported traffic, but the associations with NOx were less consistent. CONCLUSION: Exposure to traffic was associated with a higher prevalence of allergic asthma and allergic rhinitis, but not with asthma or rhinitis triggered by non-allergic factors. This difference was suggested by the overall pattern, but only clear using GIS-measured traffic intensity as a proxy for traffic exposure. An association was also found with hand-eczema during the last 12 months. We suggest that asthma and rhinitis should not be treated as homogenous groups when estimating effects from traffic in adults. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/1412646
- author
- Lindgren, Anna
LU
; Stroh, Emilie
LU
; Nihlén, Ulf
LU
; Montnemery, Peter
LU
; Axmon, Anna
LU
and Jakobsson, Kristina
LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2009
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- in
- International Journal of Health Geographics
- volume
- 8
- issue
- May 6
- article number
- 25
- publisher
- BioMed Central (BMC)
- external identifiers
-
- wos:000267073400001
- pmid:19419561
- scopus:66749103243
- ISSN
- 1476-072X
- DOI
- 10.1186/1476-072X-8-25
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- b338eace-06df-49be-b2fd-75a80c55b8d7 (old id 1412646)
- alternative location
- http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19419561?dopt=Abstract
- date added to LUP
- 2016-04-04 09:19:39
- date last changed
- 2022-03-15 18:47:28
@article{b338eace-06df-49be-b2fd-75a80c55b8d7,
abstract = {{BACKGROUND: There is conflicting evidence that traffic-related air pollution is a risk factor for allergic conditions. Few studies have investigated this in adults. In adults, a high proportion of asthma, rhinitis and eczema is triggered by non-allergic factors. We investigated traffic as a risk factor for allergic versus non-allergic asthma and rhinitis, and eczema, in adults. A questionnaire from 2000 (n = 9319, 18-77 years) provided individual data about disease outcome and self-reported traffic exposure. Additional exposure assessments were obtained using Geographical Informations Systems (GIS). Residential addresses were linked to the national Swedish Road Database and to a pollutant database with modelled annual means of NOx (Nitrogen Oxids). RESULTS: Living within 100 m from a road with a traffic intensity of >10 cars/min (24 hour mean) was associated with prevalence of current asthma reported to be triggered by allergic factors (OR = 1.83, 95% CI = 1.23-2.72) and with allergic rhinitis (OR = 1.30, 95%CI = (1.05-1.61). No relation was seen with asthma or rhinitis triggered by other factors. Living within 100 m of a road with >10 cars/min was also associated with hand-eczema during the last 12 months (OR = 1.63, 95% CI = 1.19-2.23), but not with allergic eczema or diagnosed hand-eczema. Consistent results were seen using self-reported traffic, but the associations with NOx were less consistent. CONCLUSION: Exposure to traffic was associated with a higher prevalence of allergic asthma and allergic rhinitis, but not with asthma or rhinitis triggered by non-allergic factors. This difference was suggested by the overall pattern, but only clear using GIS-measured traffic intensity as a proxy for traffic exposure. An association was also found with hand-eczema during the last 12 months. We suggest that asthma and rhinitis should not be treated as homogenous groups when estimating effects from traffic in adults.}},
author = {{Lindgren, Anna and Stroh, Emilie and Nihlén, Ulf and Montnemery, Peter and Axmon, Anna and Jakobsson, Kristina}},
issn = {{1476-072X}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{May 6}},
publisher = {{BioMed Central (BMC)}},
series = {{International Journal of Health Geographics}},
title = {{Traffic exposure associated with allergic asthma and allergic rhinitis in adults. A cross-sectional study in southern Sweden.}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1476-072X-8-25}},
doi = {{10.1186/1476-072X-8-25}},
volume = {{8}},
year = {{2009}},
}