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Effect of long-term exposure to air pollution on anxiety and depression in adults: A cross-sectional study
Vert C, Sánchez-Benavides G, Martínez D, Gotsens X, Gramunt N, Cirach M, Molinuevo JL, Sunyer J et al.. International journal of hygiene and environmental health, 2017-07-03
Topic: Air pollution and environmental exposures
Background The association between exposure to air pollutants and mental disorders among adults has been suggested, although results are not consistent. Objective To analyze the association between long-term exposure to air pollution and history of anxiety and depression disorders and of medication use (benzodiazepines and antidepressants) in adults living in Barcelona. Methods A total of 958 adults (45-74 years old) residents in Barcelona, most of them having at least one of their parents diagnosed with dementia (86%), and participating in the ALFA (Alzheimer and Families) study, were included. We used Land Use Regression (LUR) models to estimate long-term residential exposure (period 2009-2014) to PM 2.5 , PM 2.5 absorbance (PM 2.5 abs), PM 10 , PM coarse, NO 2 and NO x . Between 2013 and 2014 participants self-reported their history of anxiety and depression disorders and related medication use. The analysis was focused on those participants reporting outcome occurrence from 2009 onwards (until 2014). Results We observed an increased odds of history of depression disorders with increasing concentrations of all air pollutants [e.g. an increased odds of depression of 2.00 (95% CI; 1.37, 2.93) for each 10μg/m 3 NO 2 increase]. Such associations were consistent with an increased odds of medication use in relation to higher concentrations of air pollutants [e.g. an increased odds of antidepressants use of 1.23 (1.04, 1.44) for each 20μg/m 3 NO x increase]. Associations regarding anxiety disorders did not reach statistical significance. Conclusions Our study shows that increasing long-term exposure to air pollution may increase the odds of depression and the use of antidepressants and benzodiazepines. Further studies are needed to replicate our results and confirm this association.
Key findings
- Background The association between exposure to air pollutants and mental disorders among adults has been suggested, although results are not consistent.
- Results We observed an increased odds of history of depression disorders with increasing concentrations of all air pollutants [e.g. an increased odds of depression of 2.00 (95% CI; 1.37, 2.93) for each 10μg/m 3 NO 2 increase].
- Further studies are needed to replicate our results and confirm this association.
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Study details
- Participants958
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 47/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on journal's citation record, times cited, citations per year, impact for its field and year, cited by studies here, still being cited, senior author's track record, institution's track record and multi-centre collaboration, so those were left out: it earned 27 of the 58 points we could judge it on, which is 47 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (International journal of hygiene and environmental health) |
| Journal's citation record | — / 4 | No journal record from OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 2 / 5 | 2017 — within 10 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 2 / 4 | 958 participants |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | — / 7 | No citation count (not found in OpenAlex) — left out of this score |
| Citations per year | — / 5 | No citation count or no year — left out of this score |
| Impact for its field and year | — / 6 | No field-weighted citation impact (OpenAlex has none yet) — left out of this score |
| Cited by studies here | — / 6 | Not yet checked against this library's citation graph — left out of this score |
| Still being cited | — / 4 | No yearly citation counts — left out of this score |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | Senior author's record not available — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | — / 3 | No institution listed in OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Multi-centre collaboration | — / 3 | Institutions not listed — left out of this score |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 28705430) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 27 / 58 | Scored on 11 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 27 of the 58 points we could judge it on is 47 out of 100. |
| Total | 47 / 100 | — |
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APA 7th
Vert, C., Sánchez-Benavides, G., Martínez, D., Gotsens, X., Gramunt, N., Cirach, M., et al. (2017). Effect of long-term exposure to air pollution on anxiety and depression in adults: A cross-sectional study. International journal of hygiene and environmental health. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheh.2017.06.009
Vancouver
Vert C, Sánchez-Benavides G, Martínez D, Gotsens X, Gramunt N, Cirach M, et al. Effect of long-term exposure to air pollution on anxiety and depression in adults: A cross-sectional study. International journal of hygiene and environmental health. 2017. doi:10.1016/j.ijheh.2017.06.009. PMID: 28705430.
BibTeX
@article{vert2017-28705430,
author = {Vert, C. and Sánchez-Benavides, G. and Martínez, D. and Gotsens, X. and Gramunt, N. and Cirach, M. and Molinuevo, J. L. and Sunyer, J. and others},
title = {{Effect of long-term exposure to air pollution on anxiety and depression in adults: A cross-sectional study}},
journal = {International journal of hygiene and environmental health},
year = {2017},
doi = {10.1016/j.ijheh.2017.06.009},
pmid = {28705430},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheh.2017.06.009}
}
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