Mainz: As the level of noise increases, the incidence of
atrial fibrillation increases dramatically. Scientists from the
Department of Cardiology at the Mainz University Medical Center were
able to prove this with data from the Gutenberg Health Study. They found
that the incidence of atrial fibrillation in subjects with extreme
noise annoyance reactions increases to 23 percent, compared to just 15
percent without this environmental impact. Looking at the proportion of
sources of extreme noise pollution, aircraft noise came first with 84
percent during the day and 69 percent during sleep. These results from
the Gutenberg Health Study were published today in the current issue of
the renowned "International Journal of Cardiology".
Noise
annoyance is a very important indicator in order to decide which noise
levels may be considered significant or unacceptable and may be even
harmful for our health. Anger, disturbed sleep, exhaustion and stress
symptoms due to noise permanently impair wellbeing, health and quality
of life. „We have already been able to prove the connection between
noise and vascular disease in several studies in healthy volunteers,
patients with established coronary artery disease and also in
preclinical studies. To date, there has been no explicit study being
published which addresses to what extent noise annoyance can cause
cardiac arrhythmia,” emphasizes Univ.-Prof. Dr. Thomas Münzel, Director
of Cardiology I at the Department of Cardiology and senior author of the
study.
The effects of noise pollution have been
the subject of research within the framework of the Gutenberg Health
Study (GHS). The GHS is one of the world's largest studies of its kind,
including more than 15.000 men and women from the state capital of
Rhineland-Palatinate and the district of Mainz-Bingen between the ages
of 35 and 74 years.
The researchers
investigated the relationship between different noise sources during the
day and at night during sleep and the most common arrhythmia in the
general population, atrial fibrillation. The study found that increasing
annoyance is associated with a significant increase in the frequency of
atrial fibrillation. This grew up to 23 percent in subjects
experiencing extreme noise annoyance, while only 15 percent experience
no noise annoyance at all. In this context, it has been shown that
aircraft noise accounts for the largest share of extreme noise
pollution: 84 percent during the day and 69 percent during sleep. The
aircraft noise annoyance affected 60 percent of the population, more
than every second in the Mainz-Bingen region. Thus, it clearly
outperformed other noise sources such as road, rail or neighborhood
noise.
“The study shows for the first time that
noise annoyance caused by various noise sources during the day and night
is associated with an increased risk of atrial fibrillation,” concludes
study leader Omar Hahad, research associate at the Deparment
Cardiology, Cardiology I. “Overall, we were able to demonstrate a
stronger influence of annoyance caused by nocturnal noise on the heart
rhythm.”
The study leaders, however, point out
that noise annoyance was measured and not the physical noise. Since this
is a cross-sectional study, no statements can be made with respect to a
causal relationship.
Participants in the GHS
study had been asked to rate how much they have been harassed in recent
years by road, rail, construction, trade, neighborhood noise and
aircraft noise, both day and night. Noise annoyance was recorded using
internationally accepted, standardized questionnaires. Atrial
fibrillation was diagnosed on the basis of the medical history
(anamnestic) and / or on the study ECG.
„The
relationship between noise annoyance and atrial fibrillation is an
important finding that may also explain why noise can lead to more
strokes. However, one must not forget that noise also leads to damage to
health without the need for an anger reaction,“ says Prof. Münzel.
In
addition, the impact of the night-time ban introduced by Frankfurt am
Main airport (23.00 to 05.00 hours) from October 2011 on the aircraft
noise reported by the participants was examined. „Interestingly, there
was a significant increase in aircraft noise after the introduction of
the no-fly ban, both during the day and at night,“ commented Münzel.
“This could be due to the fact that in spite of the ban on night flights
altogether the number of flight movements has not decreased and the
flight movements have been concentrated more in the marginal hours of
22-23 o'clock and 5-6 o'clock.” The authors conclude that e.g. the total
ban on scheduled aircraft movements at the Frankfurt Airport has to be
expanded from 11 pm to 5 am to 10 pm and 6 am in accordance with the
definition of nighttime in Germany.
Photomontage realized by Peter Pulkowski (University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz)
Source: International Journal of Cardiology, https://www.internationaljournalofcardiology.com/article/S0167-5273(17)37174-7/fulltext
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Thomas Münzel
Director of Cardiology I in the Center of Cardiology
University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz
Phone 06131 17-5737
E-Mail: tmuenzel@uni-mainz.de