Higher Aircraft Noise Exposure Linked to Poor Heart Structure and Function

WEDNESDAY, Jan. 8, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Higher aircraft noise exposure is associated with adverse left ventricular (LV) remodeling, according to a study published online Jan. 8 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Constantin-Cristian Topriceanu, M.D., from University College London, and colleagues examined the impact of aircraft noise on heart structure and function using data from 3,635 U.K. Biobank participants living near four major U.K. airports who had cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging starting from 2014 and did not report hearing difficulties. The associations between aircraft noise exposure and CMR metrics were examined after adjustment for demographic, socioeconomic, lifestyle, and environmental confounders.

Overall, 3 percent of the participants experienced higher nighttime aircraft noise levels (L_night) and 8 percent experienced higher weighted 24-hour day-evening-night aircraft noise levels (L_den; ≥45 and ≥50 dB, respectively). The researchers found that participants exposed to higher L_night had 7 percent greater LV mass, which is associated with a 32 percent greater risk for major adverse cardiac events (MACE), and 4 percent thicker LV walls with a normal septal-to-lateral wall thickness ratio. These individuals also had worse LV myocardial dynamics, including an 8 percent lower global circumferential strain, which is associated with a 27 percent higher MACE risk. The findings were clearest for L_night but were similar for L_den. Ten to 50 percent of the observed associations were mediated by body mass index and hypertension.

“Our findings also support the negative impacts of aircraft noise on the human heart, with important implications for noise reduction policies,” the authors write.

Abstract/Full Text

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