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Prolonged traffic, rail noise slightly raises risk for MI
The risk for MI rises slightly according to the amount of road and rail traffic noise that people are exposed to, according to results published in Deutsches Arzteblatt International.
“The acoustic input data ... are of high quality and take [into] account a variety of different mean and maximum noise-level indicators,” the researchers wrote. “Our case-control study allows, for the first time, direct comparison of MI risk estimates for aircraft- and road- and rail-traffic noises on the basis of a very large data set from health insurers.”
Researchers analyzed data from three large health insurers in the Rhine-Main region of Germany consisting of 19,632 patients older than 40 years diagnosed with MI from 2006 to 2010 and 834,734 controls. The evaluation was based on a continuous, 24-hour noise level in stratified decibel (dB) levels as determined at the address of each participant in 2005.
Andreas Seidler, MPH, from the Institute and Policlinic of Occupational and Social Medicine, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität, Dresden, Germany, and colleagues found the risk for MI increased 2.8% per 10 dB rise (95% CI, 1.2-4.5) for road-traffic noise and 2.3% per 10 dB rise (95% CI, 0.5-4.2) for rail-traffic noise, but they did not find a similar risk increase due to aircraft noise.
Andreas Seidler
Aircraft noise more than 60 dB was associated with a nonsignificant higher risk for MI (OR = 1.42; 95% CI, 0.62-3.35), according to the researchers.
The researchers found increased risk estimates for MI were evident for road-traffic noise at a level of 55 dB, and that the OR for 60 dB to 64 dB was 1.09 (95% CI, 1.02-1.16). With exposure to a 24-hour continuous noise level of at least 70 dB, the OR rose to 1.13 (95% CI, 1-1.27).
Seidler and colleagues observed a similar pattern for rail-traffic noise, but it did not reach statistical significance.
Approximately 53% of the patients with MI died during the study period, and when a selection of the state insurance holders was asked to participate in a supplementary survey at least 10 years later, a spike in deaths from continuous, 24-hour exposure to air-traffic noise of at least 60 dB was observed (OR = 2.7; 95% CI, 1.08-6.74).
The researchers wrote that a 10 dB-increase in air-traffic noise conferred a 3.2% (95% CI, –5.6 to 7.1) increased risk for fatal MI, whereas a 10 dB-increase in road-traffic noise conferred a 3.9% (95% CI, 1.6-6.3) elevated risk, and a 10 dB-increase in rail-traffic noise conferred a 3.8% (95% CI, 1.2-6.4) increased risk.
There were some limitations to the survey. “The insurers’ data include no information about lifestyle- and occupation-related risk factors,” the researchers wrote. “However ... the acoustic input data in this study are of high quality and take [into account] a variety of different mean and maximum noise-level indicators.” – by James Clark
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.