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Epidemiological studies on noise and blood pressure in children: Observations and suggestions
Katarina Paunović1, Stephen Stansfeld, Charlotte Clark
1Institute for Hygiene and Medical Ecology, School of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia. paunkaya@gmail.com
Insights
Environmental noise, from aircraft and road traffic, shows a tendency to increase children's blood pressure (BP). Methodological differences in studies highlight the need for standardized BP measurement protocols in future research.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Health
- Pediatric Cardiology
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Urban children are increasingly exposed to environmental noise from sources like aircraft and road traffic.
- Elevated blood pressure (BP) in childhood is a significant risk factor for cardiovascular disease later in life.
- Understanding the impact of noise pollution on pediatric BP is crucial for public health interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review and compare the methodologies of studies investigating the effects of aircraft and road-traffic noise on children's blood pressure.
- To identify similarities and differences in blood pressure measurement techniques across studies.
- To synthesize findings on the relationship between noise exposure and pediatric BP.
Main Methods:
- A systematic literature search identified relevant peer-reviewed studies, conference proceedings, and theses published in English over the last 30 years.
- Studies were analyzed based on design (cross-sectional, longitudinal), participant characteristics, noise exposure assessment, and blood pressure measurement protocols.
- Data on systolic and diastolic blood pressure changes in relation to noise exposure were extracted and detailed.
Main Results:
- Studies on aircraft noise exhibited more uniform methodologies, suggesting a slight positive association with children's BP.
- Road-traffic noise studies were methodologically diverse but showed a consistent trend towards increasing systolic BP.
- Variability in BP measurement timing, location, devices, cuff sizes, and control for confounders (age, gender, SES) contributed to diverse findings.
Conclusions:
- Despite methodological heterogeneity in noise assessment and BP measurement, studies indicate a positive association between environmental noise exposure and children's blood pressure.
- Significant diversity exists in study designs, participant characteristics, and confounder control, impacting the comparability of results.
- Standardized protocols for noise exposure assessment and BP measurement are recommended for future field studies to enhance research consistency and validity.
Objective:
The goal of this review was to investigate methodological differences in studies on the effects of aircraft or road-traffic noise on blood pressure (BP) of urban children, emphasizing the similarities and differences in blood pressure measurements.
Methods:
A literature search has identified eight peer-reviewed studies, four conference proceedings and one PhD thesis on the effects of aircraft or road-traffic noise on children's blood pressure published in English in the last 30 years. Most of the studies were cross-sectional, and four studies were longitudinal, with follow-up period from one to three years. The studies were analyzed according to the following methodological issues: study design, children's characteristics, noise exposure assessment and blood pressure measurements. The effects of noise on systolic and diastolic pressure were presented in detail.
Results:
Studies on aircraft noise had more uniform methodology, indicating a slight tendency towards a positive relationship between aircraft noise exposure and BP in children. The studies on road-traffic noise were methodologically diverse, but compared to aircraft noise studies they showed a more uniform trend in the direction of a positive relationship with systolic BP. The time, place and number of BP measurements, as well as the devices and cuff sizes varied among the studies. Children's age, gender, body composition and ethnicity, and socio-economic status remain the greatest source of diversity in BP values.
Conclusions:
The reviewed studies were methodologically diverse concerning noise exposure assessment, BP measurement, study design and control for confounders. In spite of this, they indicate a tendency toward positive association between noise exposure and children's blood pressure. We recommended strategies that might help researchers adopt similar procedures when measuring BP in future field studies.
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