Parkinson's disease and long-term exposure to outdoor air pollution: A matched case-control study in the Netherlands

Abstract

Background: There is some evidence to suggest an association between ambient air pollution and development of Parkinson's disease (PD). However, the small number of studies published to date has reported inconsistent findings. Objectives: To assess the association between long-term exposure to ambient air pollution constituents and the development of PD. Methods: Air pollution exposures (particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter 30.4 μg/m3) was 0.87 (95% CI: 0.54, 1.41). For PM2.5 where the contrast in exposure was more limited, the OR associated with an increase from the first quartile PM2.5 (22.3 μg/m3) was 0.50 (95% CI: 0.24, 1.01). In a subset of the population with long-term residential stability (n = 632), an increased risk of PD was observed (e.g. OR for Q4 vs Q1 NO2:1.37, 95% CI: 0.71, 2.67). Conclusions: We found no clear association between 16 years of residential exposure to ambient air pollution and the development of PD in The Netherlands. Keywords: Air pollution, Parkinson's disease, Long-term exposure, Land-use regression