Occupational noise exposure and risk of hypertension in an industrial workforce

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Abstract

<div class="section"> <a class="named-anchor" id="S1">  </a> <h5 class="section-title" id="d3768802e171">Background</h5> <p id="P1">Community noise exposure has been shown to increase the risk of hypertension; however, the relationship between occupational noise exposure and hypertension is less clear. </p> </div><div class="section"> <a class="named-anchor" id="S2">  </a> <h5 class="section-title" id="d3768802e176">Methods</h5> <p id="P2">Using an inception cohort of workers in a specialty metals manufacturing company, we retrospectively assessed occupational noise exposure, hearing acuity, and incident hypertension diagnoses using administrative datasets. Time-weighted average noise exposure levels were assigned to employees based on their job histories. Cox proportional hazards models were performed to determine the association of noise exposure with risk of incident hypertension. </p> </div><div class="section"> <a class="named-anchor" id="S3">  </a> <h5 class="section-title" id="d3768802e181">Results</h5> <p id="P3">The adjusted hazard ratio (HR) of incident hypertension did not significantly differ between groups by cumulative continuous or categorized noise exposure metric. </p> </div><div class="section"> <a class="named-anchor" id="S4">  </a> <h5 class="section-title" id="d3768802e186">Conclusion</h5> <p id="P4">We found no increased risk of incident hypertension with exposure to occupational noise among workers. Further assessment examining workers’ use of hearing protection devices is warranted. </p> </div>

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Cardiovascular effects of environmental noise exposure

Thomas Münzel, Tommaso Gori, Wolfgang Babisch … (2014)

The role of noise as an environmental pollutant and its impact on health are being increasingly recognized. Beyond its effects on the auditory system, noise causes annoyance and disturbs sleep, and it impairs cognitive performance. Furthermore, evidence from epidemiologic studies demonstrates that environmental noise is associated with an increased incidence of arterial hypertension, myocardial infarction, and stroke. Both observational and experimental studies indicate that in particular night-time noise can cause disruptions of sleep structure, vegetative arousals (e.g. increases of blood pressure and heart rate) and increases in stress hormone levels and oxidative stress, which in turn may result in endothelial dysfunction and arterial hypertension. This review focuses on the cardiovascular consequences of environmental noise exposure and stresses the importance of noise mitigation strategies for public health.

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The quantitative relationship between road traffic noise and hypertension: a meta-analysis.

Elise van Kempen, Wolfgang Babisch (2012)

Reviews have suggested that road noise exposure is associated with high blood pressure (hypertension). No reliable exposure-response relationship is as yet available. A meta-analysis was carried out in order to derive a quantitative exposure-response relationship between the exposure to road traffic noise and the prevalence of hypertension, and to gain some insight into the sources of heterogeneity among study results. Twenty-seven observational studies published between 1970 and 2010 in English, German or Dutch, were evaluated. Finally, the results of 24 studies were included into the data aggregation. Road traffic noise was positively and significantly associated with hypertension: Data aggregation revealed an odds ratio (OR) of 1.034 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.011-1.056] per 5 dB(A) increase of the 16 h average road traffic noise level (LAeq16hr) [range 45-75 dB(A)]. Important sources of heterogeneity were the age and sex of the population under study, the way exposure was ascertained, and the noise reference level used. Also the way noise was treated in the statistical model and the minimum years of residence of the population under study, gave an explanation of the observed heterogeneity. No definite conclusions can be drawn about the threshold value for the relationship between road traffic noise and the prevalence of hypertension. Based on the meta-analysis, a quantitative relationship is derived that can be used for health impact assessment. The results of this meta-analysis are consistent with a slight increase of cardiovascular disease risk in populations exposed to transportation noise.

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The association between noise exposure and blood pressure and ischemic heart disease: a meta-analysis.

Elise van Kempen, Hanneke Kruize, Hendriek Boshuizen … (2002)

It has been suggested that noise exposure is associated with blood pressure changes and ischemic heart disease risk, but epidemiologic evidence is still limited. Furthermore, most reviews investigating these relations were not carried out in a systematic way, which makes them more prone to bias. We conducted a meta-analysis of 43 epidemiologic studies published between 1970 and 1999 that investigate the relation between noise exposure (both occupational and community) and blood pressure and/or ischemic heart disease (International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, codes 410-414). We studied a wide range of effects, from blood pressure changes to a myocardial infarction. With respect to the association between noise exposure and blood pressure, small blood pressure differences were evident. Our meta-analysis showed a significant association for both occupational noise exposure and air traffic noise exposure and hypertension: We estimated relative risks per 5 dB(A) noise increase of 1.14 (1.01-1.29) and 1.26 (1.14-1.39), respectively. Air traffic noise exposure was positively associated with the consultation of a general practitioner or specialist, the use of cardiovascular medicines, and angina pectoris. In cross-sectional studies, road traffic noise exposure increases the risk of myocardial infarction and total ischemic heart disease. Although we can conclude that noise exposure can contribute to the prevalence of cardiovascular disease, the evidence for a relation between noise exposure and ischemic heart disease is still inconclusive because of the limitations in exposure characterization, adjustment for important confounders, and the occurrence of publication bias.