Environmental Epidemiology

A pathway level analysis of PFAS exposure and risk of gestational diabetes mellitus

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have been found to be associated with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) development, a maternal health disorder in pregnancy with negative effects that can extend b...

Authors: Rahel L. Birru, Hai-Wei Liang, Fouzia Farooq, Megha Bedi, Maisa Feghali, Catherine L. Haggerty, Dara D. Mendez, Janet M. Catov, Carla A. Ng and Jennifer J. Adibi

Letter to the Editor: Cancer rates not explained by smoking: how to investigate a single county

Authors: Douglas J. Myers, Polly Hoppin, Molly Jacobs, Richard Clapp and David Kriebel

Clinical outcomes associated with long-term exposure to airborne particulate pollution in kidney transplant recipients

Researchers have yet to investigate the specific association between 10-μm particulate matter (PM10) levels and the risk of graft failure, kidney disease, or the functional decline of transplanted kidneys, in ...

Authors: Yong Chul Kim, Ejin Kim, Jiyun Jung, Jae Yoon Park, Hajeong Lee, Dong Ki Kim, Yon Su Kim, Chun Soo Lim, Jung Pyo Lee and Ho Kim

Risk of cardiovascular mortality, stroke and coronary heart mortality associated with aircraft noise around Congonhas airport, São Paulo, Brazil: a small-area study

Noise pollution is increasingly recognised as a public health hazard, yet limited evidence is available from low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), particularly for specific sources. Here, we investigated th...

Authors: Aina Roca-Barceló, Adelaide Nardocci, Breno Souza de Aguiar, Adeylson G. Ribeiro, Marcelo Antunes Failla, Anna L. Hansell, Maria Regina Cardoso and Frédéric B. Piel

Time-series analysis of daily ambient temperature and emergency department visits in five US cities with a comparison of exposure metrics derived from 1-km meteorology products

Ambient temperature observations from single monitoring stations (usually located at the major international airport serving a city) are routinely used to estimate heat exposures in epidemiologic studies. This...

Authors: Nikita Thomas, Stefanie T. Ebelt, Andrew J. Newman, Noah Scovronick, Rohan R. D’Souza, Shannon E. Moss, Joshua L. Warren, Matthew J. Strickland, Lyndsey A. Darrow and Howard H. Chang

Spatio-temporal associations of air pollutant concentrations, GP respiratory consultations and respiratory inhaler prescriptions: a 5-year study of primary care in the borough of Lambeth, South London

Although the associations of outdoor air pollution exposure with mortality and hospital admissions are well established, few previous studies have reported on primary care clinical and prescribing data. We ass...

Authors: Mark Ashworth, Antonis Analitis, David Whitney, Evangelia Samoli, Sofia Zafeiratou, Richard Atkinson, Konstantina Dimakopoulou, Sean Beavers, Joel Schwartz and Klea Katsouyanni

Emulating causal dose-response relations between air pollutants and mortality in the Medicare population

Fine particulate matter (PM_2.5), ozone (O₃), and nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) are major air pollutants that pose considerable threats to human health. However, what has been mostly missing in air pollution epidemiology...

Authors: Yaguang Wei, Mahdieh Danesh Yazdi, Qian Di, Weeberb J. Requia, Francesca Dominici, Antonella Zanobetti and Joel Schwartz

Occupational exposure to glyphosate and risk of lymphoma:results of an Italian multicenter case-control study

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) recently classified glyphosate, the most used herbicide worldwide, as a probable human carcinogen. We inquired into the association between occupational e...

Authors: Federico Meloni, Giannina Satta, Marina Padoan, Andrea Montagna, Ilaria Pilia, Alessandra Argiolas, Sara Piro, Corrado Magnani, Angela Gambelunghe, Giacomo Muzi, Giovanni Maria Ferri, Luigi Vimercati, Roberta Zanotti, Aldo Scarpa, Mariagrazia Zucca, Sara De Matteis…

Acute associations between heatwaves and preterm and early-term birth in 50 US metropolitan areas: a matched case-control study

The effect of heatwaves on adverse birth outcomes is not well understood and may vary by how heatwaves are defined. The study aims to examine acute associations between various heatwave definitions and preterm...

Authors: Mengjiao Huang, Matthew J. Strickland, Megan Richards, Heather A. Holmes, Andrew J. Newman, Joshua V. Garn, Yan Liu, Joshua L. Warren, Howard H. Chang and Lyndsey A. Darrow

Air pollution, methane super-emitters, and oil and gas wells in Northern California: the relationship with migraine headache prevalence and exacerbation

Migraine–an episodic disorder characterized by severe headache that can lead to disability–affects over 1 billion people worldwide. Prior studies have found that short-term exposure to fine particulate matter (PM

Authors: Holly Elser, Rachel Morello-Frosch, Alice Jacobson, Alice Pressman, Marianthi-Anna Kioumourtzoglou, Richard Reimer and Joan A. Casey

Childhood traffic-related air pollution and adverse changes in subclinical atherosclerosis measures from childhood to adulthood

Chronic exposure to air pollutants is associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) among adults. However, little is known about how air pollution may affect the development of subclinical ath...

Authors: Shohreh F. Farzan, Rima Habre, Phoebe Danza, Frederick Lurmann, W. James Gauderman, Edward Avol, Theresa Bastain, Howard N. Hodis and Carrie Breton

DNA methylation in the adipose tissue and whole blood of Agent Orange-exposed Operation Ranch Hand veterans: a pilot study

Between 1962 and 1971, the US Air Force sprayed Agent Orange across Vietnam, exposing many soldiers to this dioxin-containing herbicide. Several negative health outcomes have been linked to Agent Orange exposu...

Authors: Matthew R. Rytel, Rondi Butler, Melissa Eliot, Joseph M. Braun, E. Andres Houseman and Karl T. Kelsey

Aspartame and cancer – new evidence for causation

Aspartame is one of the world’s most widely used artificial sweeteners and is an ingredient in more than 5000 food products globally. A particularly important use is in low-calorie beverages consumed by childr...

Authors: Philip J. Landrigan and Kurt Straif

Extreme temperature and out-of-hospital-cardiac-arrest. Nationwide study in a hot climate country

Out-of-hospital-cardiac arrest (OHCA) is frequently linked to environmental exposures. Climate change and global warming phenomenon have been found related to cardiovascular morbidity, however there is no agre...

Authors: Hannan Kranc, Victor Novack, Alexandra Shtein, Rimma Sherman and Lena Novack

Protocol for personal RF-EMF exposure measurement studies in 5th generation telecommunication networks

The general population is exposed to Radio-Frequency Electromagnetic Fields (RF-EMFs) used by telecommunication networks. Previous studies developed methods to assess this exposure. These methods will be inade...

Authors: Maarten Velghe, Sam Aerts, Luc Martens, Wout Joseph and Arno Thielens

Cord blood acrylamide levels and birth size, and interactions with genetic variants in acrylamide-metabolising genes

Up to now, 3 epidemiological studies have shown clear inverse associations between prenatal acrylamide exposure and birth size. In addition to studying the association between acrylamide and birth size, we inv...

Authors: Janneke Hogervorst, Hubert W. Vesper, Narjes Madhloum, Wilfried Gyselaers and Tim Nawrot

Road traffic noise, noise sensitivity, noise annoyance, psychological and physical health and mortality

Both physical and psychological health outcomes have been associated with exposure to environmental noise. Noise sensitivity could have the same moderating effect on physical and psychological health outcomes ...

Authors: Stephen Stansfeld, Charlotte Clark, Melanie Smuk, John Gallacher and Wolfgang Babisch

Geospatial indicators of exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity to assess neighbourhood variation in vulnerability to climate change-related health hazards

Although the frequency and magnitude of climate change-related health hazards (CCRHHs) are likely to increase, the population vulnerabilities and corresponding health impacts are dependent on a community’s exp...

Authors: Jessica Yu, Kaitlin Castellani, Krista Forysinski, Paul Gustafson, James Lu, Emily Peterson, Martino Tran, Angela Yao, Jingxuan Zhao and Michael Brauer

Effect of short-term exposure to particulate air pollution on heart rate variability in normal-weight and obese adults

The adverse effects of particulate air pollution on heart rate variability (HRV) have been reported. However, it remains unclear whether they differ by the weight status as well as between wake and sleep.

Authors: Luyi Li, Dayu Hu, Wenlou Zhang, Liyan Cui, Xu Jia, Di Yang, Shan Liu, Furong Deng, Junxiu Liu and Xinbiao Guo

Systemic lupus Erythematosus and geomagnetic disturbances: a time series analysis

To examine the influence of solar cycle and geomagnetic effects on SLE disease activity.

Authors: George Stojan, Flavia Giammarino and Michelle Petri

Examining the role of wind in human illness due to pesticide drift in Washington state, 2000–2015

Pesticides play an important role in protecting the food supply and the public’s health from pests and diseases. By their nature, pesticides can be toxic to unintended target organisms. Changing winds contribu...

Authors: Edward J. Kasner, Joanne B. Prado, Michael G. Yost and Richard A. Fenske

Interaction of Sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) candidate longevity gene and particulate matter (PM2.5) on all-cause mortality: a longitudinal cohort study in China

The SIRT1 gene was associated with the lifespan in several organisms through inflammatory and oxidative stress pathways. Long-term air particulate matter (PM) is detrimental to health through the same pathways.

Authors: Yao Yao, Linxin Liu, Guang Guo, Yi Zeng and John S. Ji

Prenatal exposure to bisphenol A and autistic- and ADHD-related symptoms in children aged 2 and5 years from the Odense Child Cohort

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a non-persistent chemical with endocrine disrupting abilities used in a variety of consumer products. Fetal exposure to BPA is of concern due to the elevated sensitivity, which particularl...

Authors: Julie Bang Hansen, Niels Bilenberg, Clara Amalie Gade Timmermann, Richard Christian Jensen, Hanne Frederiksen, Anna-Maria Andersson, Henriette Boye Kyhl and Tina Kold Jensen

Socio-economic factors do also matter: comments on the article “can climatic factors explain the differences in COVID-19 incidence and severity across the SPANISH regions?: an ecological study”

Phosri et al., commented on our previous study about the influence of climate variables at the beginning of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in Spain. They showed the impact of the association of gross domestic product...

Authors: Pedro Muñoz Cacho, José L. Hernández, Marcos López-Hoyos and Víctor M. Martínez-Taboada

Socio‐economic factors do also matter: comments on the article “Can climatic factors explain the differences in COVID-19 incidence and severity across the spanish regions?: an ecological study”

A report published in this journal showed an inversely significant association between ultraviolet radiation (UVR) before the pandemic and cumulative COVID-19 cases in Spain. The analyses employed several mete...

Authors: Arthit Phosri, Yang Cao, Mariko Harada Sassa and Kouji H. Harada

Houston hurricane Harvey health (Houston-3H) study: assessment of allergic symptoms and stress after hurricane Harvey flooding

In August 2017, Hurricane Harvey caused unprecedented flooding across the greater Houston area. Given the potential for widespread flood-related exposures, including mold and sewage, and the emotional and ment...

Authors: Abiodun O. Oluyomi, Kristen Panthagani, Jesus Sotelo, Xiangjun Gu, Georgina Armstrong, Dan Na Luo, Kristi L. Hoffman, Diana Rohlman, Lane Tidwell, Winifred J. Hamilton, Elaine Symanski, Kimberly Anderson, Joseph F. Petrosino, Cheryl Lyn Walker and Melissa Bondy

Seasonality of acute kidney injury in a tertiary hospital academic center: an observational cohort study

The aim of our study was to describe seasonal trends of acute kidney injury (AKI) and its relationship with weather conditions in a hospitalized population.

Authors: Gianmarco Lombardi, Giovanni Gambaro, Nicoletta Pertica, Alessandro Naticchia, Matteo Bargagli and Pietro Manuel Ferraro

Inferential challenges when assessing racial/ethnic health disparities in environmental research

Numerous epidemiologic studies have documented environmental health disparities according to race/ethnicity (R/E) to inform targeted interventions aimed at reducing these disparities. Yet, the use of R/E under...

Authors: Tarik Benmarhnia, Anjum Hajat and Jay S. Kaufman

Short-term exposure to air pollution and hospital admission for pneumonia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Air pollution is a major issue that poses a health threat worldwide. Although several studies investigated the adverse effects of air pollution on various diseases, few have directly demonstrated the effects o...

Authors: Jeong Yee, Young Ah Cho, Hee Jeong Yoo, Hyunseo Yun and Hye Sun Gwak

Trimester effects of source-specific PM₁₀ on birth weight outcomes in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC)

Evidence suggests that exposure to particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter less than 10 μm (PM₁₀) is associated with reduced birth weight, but information is limited on the sources of PM₁₀ and exposure miscl...

Authors: Yingxin Chen, Susan Hodgson, John Gulliver, Raquel Granell, A. John Henderson, Yutong Cai and Anna L. Hansell

Metabolomic signatures of the long-term exposure to air pollution and temperature

Long-term exposures to air pollution has been reported to be associated with inflammation and oxidative stress. However, the underlying metabolic mechanisms remain poorly understood.

Authors: Feiby L. Nassan, Rachel S. Kelly, Anna Kosheleva, Petros Koutrakis, Pantel S. Vokonas, Jessica A. Lasky-Su and Joel D. Schwartz

Long-term effects of fine particulate matter exposure on the progression of arterial stiffness

Prior studies have investigated the association of PM_2.5 exposure with arterial stiffness measured by ankle-brachial index (ABI) and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV), of which conclusions are inconsiste...

Authors: Dianqin Sun, Yue Liu, Jie Zhang, Jia Liu, Zhiyuan Wu, Mengyang Liu, Xia Li, Xiuhua Guo and Lixin Tao

Preconception air pollution exposure and glucose tolerance in healthy pregnant women in a middle-income country

Preconception exposure to air pollution has been associated with glucose tolerance during pregnancy. However, the evidence in low and middle-income countries (LMICs) is under debate yet. Therefore, this study ...

Authors: Moslem Lari Najafi, Mehdi Zarei, Ali Gohari, Leyla Haghighi, Hafez Heydari and Mohammad Miri

Synergistic health effects of air pollution, temperature, and pollen exposure: a systematic review of epidemiological evidence

Exposure to heat, air pollution, and pollen are associated with health outcomes, including cardiovascular and respiratory disease. Studies assessing the health impacts of climate change have considered increas...

Authors: Susan C. Anenberg, Shannon Haines, Elizabeth Wang, Nicholas Nassikas and Patrick L. Kinney

The effects of everyday-life exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons on biological age indicators

Further knowledge on modifiable aging risk factors is required to mitigate the increasing burden of age-related diseases in a rapidly growing global demographic of elderly individuals. We explored the effect o...

Authors: Sofia Pavanello, Manuela Campisi, Giuseppe Mastrangelo, Mirjam Hoxha and Valentina Bollati

Mortality in Yusho patients exposed to polychlorinated biphenyls and polychlorinated dibenzofurans: a 50-year retrospective cohort study

In 1968, the Yusho incident resulted in accidental exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs), and related compounds in Japan. This study updated the risk of mortality ...

Authors: Daisuke Onozuka, Yuko Nakamura, Gaku Tsuji and Masutaka Furue

The use of a bed with an insulating system of electromagnetic fields improves immune function, redox and inflammatory states, and decrease the rate of aging

The immune system, as a homeostatic system, is an excellent marker of health and has also been proposed as an indicator of the rate of aging. The base of the age-related changes in the immune system, “immunose...

Authors: E. Díaz-Del Cerro, C. Vida, I. Martínez de Toda, J. Félix and M. De la Fuente

Social inequalities in heat-attributable mortality in the city of Turin, northwest of Italy: a time series analysis from 1982 to 2018

Understanding context specific heat-health risks in urban areas is important, especially given anticipated severe increases in summer temperatures due to climate change effects. We investigate social inequalit...

Authors: Marta Ellena, Joan Ballester, Paola Mercogliano, Elisa Ferracin, Giuliana Barbato, Giuseppe Costa and Vijendra Ingole

Health consequences of drought in the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region: hotspot areas and needed actions

Over the past four decades, drought episodes in the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) of the of the World Health Organization (WHO) have gradually become more widespread, prolonged and frequent. We aimed to m...

Authors: Saverio Bellizzi, Chris Lane, Mohamed Elhakim and Pierre Nabeth

Incident cardiovascular disease and particulate matter air pollution in South Korea using a population-based and nationwide cohort of 0.2 million adults

While many studies reported the association between long-term exposure to particulate matter air pollution (PM) and cardiovascular disease (CVD), few studies focused on incidence with relatively high-dose expo...

Authors: Ok-Jin Kim, Soo Hyun Lee, Si-Hyuck Kang and Sun-Young Kim

Climate factors and gestational diabetes mellitus risk – a systematic review

Current and projected increases in global temperatures and extreme climate events have led to heightened interest in the impact of climate factors (i.e. ambient temperature, season/seasonality, and humidity) o...

Authors: Emma V. Preston, Claudia Eberle, Florence M. Brown and Tamarra James-Todd

Association between coarse particulate matter and inflammatory and hemostatic markers in a cohort of midlife women

Exposure to particulate matter air pollution has been associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality; however, most studies have focused on fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) exposure and CVD. ...

Authors: Emilie Davis, Brian Malig, Rachel Broadwin, Keita Ebisu, Rupa Basu, Ellen B. Gold, Lihong Qi, Carol A. Derby, Sung Kyun Park and Xiangmei (May) Wu

Association of ambient air pollution with cardiovascular disease risks in people with type 2 diabetes: a Bayesian spatial survival analysis

Evidence is limited on excess risks of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) associated with ambient air pollution in diabetic populations. Survival analyses without considering the spatial structure and possible spa...

Authors: Pei-Fang Su, Fei-Ci Sie, Chun-Ting Yang, Yu-Lin Mau, Shihchen Kuo and Huang-Tz Ou

Exposure to Perflouroalkyl acids and foetal and maternal thyroid status: a review

Exposure to perfluorinated-alkyl-acids (PFAAs) is ubiquitous. PFAAs are hormone-disrupting compounds that are strongly suspected to affect mother-child-health such as fetal growth. Thyroid disruption is a plau...

Authors: Sophie A. H. Boesen, Manhai Long, Maria Wielsøe, Vicente Mustieles, Mariana F. Fernandez and Eva C. Bonefeld-Jørgensen

Can climatic factors explain the differences in COVID-19 incidence and severity across the Spanish regions?: An ecological study

Environmental factors play a central role in seasonal epidemics. SARS-CoV-2 infection in Spain has shown a heterogeneous geographical pattern This study aimed to assess the influence of several climatic factor...

Authors: Pedro Muñoz Cacho, José L. Hernández, Marcos López-Hoyos and Víctor M. Martínez-Taboada

Aryl-hydrocarbon receptor binding and the incidence of type 2 diabetes: the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil)

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) may cause diabetes, in part through aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) binding. Ensuing mitochondrial dysfunction is postulated to mediate this effect. We aim to investigate t...

Authors: Bruce B. Duncan, Cristina D. Castilhos, Paula A. Bracco, Maria I. Schmidt, Sora Kang, Suyeol Im, Hong-Kyu Lee, Álvaro Vigo and Youngmi K. Pak

Perfluoroalkyl substances are associated with elevated blood pressure and hypertension in highly exposed young adults

Residents in a large area of North-Eastern Italy were exposed to perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) via drinking water. Studies on the association between PFAS and blood pressure levels are limited, and results ...

Authors: Gisella Pitter, Maryam Zare Jeddi, Giulia Barbieri, Massimo Gion, Aline S. C. Fabricio, Francesca Daprà, Francesca Russo, Tony Fletcher and Cristina Canova

Correlation between exposure to fine particulate matter and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy in Shanghai, China

Association between fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) is inconsistent and appears to change in each trimester. We aim to investigate the association of exposure to ambi...

Authors: Xiujuan Su, Yan Zhao, Yingying Yang and Jing Hua

Drug use disorder following early life exposure to tetrachloroethylene (PCE)-contaminated drinking water: a retrospective cohort study

Many studies of adults with occupational exposure to solvents such as tetrachloroethylene (PCE) have shown adverse effects on cognition, mood and behavioral problems. Much less is known about neurotoxic effect...

Authors: Ann Aschengrau, Alexandra Grippo, Michael R. Winter, Margaret G. Shea, Roberta F. White and Richard Saitz

Associations between prenatal maternal exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and birth outcomes among pregnant women in San Francisco

Perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are used in consumer products for their water repellent and flame retardant properties, respectively. However, there is widespread pr...

Authors: Stephanie M. Eick, Elizabeth K. Hom Thepaksorn, Monika A. Izano, Lara J. Cushing, Yunzhu Wang, Sabrina Crispo Smith, Songmei Gao, June-Soo Park, Amy M. Padula, Erin DeMicco, Linda Valeri, Tracey J. Woodruff and Rachel Morello-Frosch