Cardiovascular Effects of Aircraft Noise: Is the Ear the Avenue to the Heart?
Beat J. Meyer, MD
Findings from two large studies show serious cardiovascular health hazards in residents of areas surrounding airports.
In previous studies, aircraft noise was associated with an increased risk for hypertension, but few studies have addressed the association of aircraft noise with cardiovascular disease or mortality, partly because a very large exposed population is needed to provide adequate statistical power. In two new reports, researchers tackle this issue.
In the U.K., investigators studied annual exposure to aircraft noise levels and rates of hospital admissions and death from stroke, coronary heart disease, and cardiovascular disease from 2001 through 2005 in 3.6 million U.K. residents living near Heathrow airport. Risks for hospital admission increased significantly with increasing levels of both daytime and nighttime aircraft noise. After adjustment for age, sex, ethnicity, deprivation, and smoking (estimated through lung cancer mortality), relative risks of hospitalization in residents experiencing the highest levels of daytime aircraft noise (>63 dB) compared with those experiencing the lowest levels (≤51 dB) were as follows:
Relative risks for mortality were similar in magnitude, although the confidence intervals were wider.
In a U.S. study, researchers superimposed contours of aircraft noise levels onto census-based population data from 2009 and examined cardiovascular hospital admissions in more than 6 million Medicare-eligible individuals residing near 89 airports (2218 zip codes). In adjusted analysis, a 10 dB increase in noise exposure (using the 90th percentile of noise exposure per zip code and averaged across all airports) was associated with a significant 3.5% increase in the cardiovascular hospital admission rate. In a threshold analysis, the association between aircraft noise level and cardiovascular hospitalization was nonsignificant below 55 dB.
Citation(s):
Hansell AL et al. Aircraft noise and cardiovascular disease near Heathrow airport in London: Small area study. BMJ 2013 Oct 8; 347:f5432.
Correia AW et al. Residential exposure to aircraft noise and hospital admissions for cardiovascular diseases: Multi-airport retrospective study. BMJ 2013 Oct 8; 347:f5561.
Stansfeld S.Airport noise and cardiovascular disease: The link seems real: Planners take note. BMJ 2013 Oct 8; 347:f5752.
