Hypertension and exposure to noise near airports: the HYENA study.
BACKGROUND
An increasing number of people are exposed to aircraft and road traffic noise. Hypertension is an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease, and even a small contribution in risk from environmental factors may have a major impact on public health.


OBJECTIVE
The HYENA (Hypertension and Exposure to Noise near Airports) study aimed to assess the relations between noise from aircraft or road traffic near airports and the risk of hypertension.


METHODS
We measured blood pressure and collected data on health, socioeconomic, and lifestyle factors, including diet and physical activity, via questionnaire at home visits for 4,861 persons 45-70 years of age, who had lived at least 5 years near any of six major European airports. We assessed noise exposure using detailed models with a resolution of 1 dB (5 dB for United Kingdom road traffic noise), and a spatial resolution of 250 x 250 m for aircraft and 10 x 10 m for road traffic noise.


RESULTS
We found significant exposure-response relationships between night-time aircraft as well as average daily road traffic noise exposure and risk of hypertension after adjustment for major confounders. For night-time aircraft noise, a 10-dB increase in exposure was associated with an odds ratio (OR) of 1.14 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.01-1.29]. The exposure-response relationships were similar for road traffic noise and stronger for men with an OR of 1.54 (95% CI, 0.99-2.40) in the highest exposure category (> 65 dB; p(trend) = 0.008).


CONCLUSIONS
Our results indicate excess risks of hypertension related to long-term noise exposure, primarily for night-time aircraft noise and daily average road traffic noise.
Jarup
Lars
L
Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Imperial College London, St Mary's Campus, Norfolk Place, London, United Kingdom. l.jarup@imperial.ac.uk
Babisch
Wolfgang
W
Houthuijs
Danny
D
Pershagen
Göran
G
Katsouyanni
Klea
K
Cadum
Ennio
E
Dudley
Marie-Louise
ML
Savigny
Pauline
P
Seiffert
Ingeburg
I
Swart
Wim
W
Breugelmans
Oscar
O
Bluhm
Gösta
G
Selander
Jenny
J
Haralabidis
Alexandros
A
Dimakopoulou
Konstantina
K
Sourtzi
Panayota
P
Velonakis
Manolis
M
Vigna-Taglianti
Federica
F
D000368:Aged; D000401:Aircraft; D001794:Blood Pressure; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005060:Europe / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018986:Motor Vehicles; D009622:Noise / Q000009:adverse effects*; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013997:Time Factors