Long-term health effects of the Eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption: a prospective cohort study in 2010 and 2013
Objectives To examine the long-term development of physical and mental health following exposure to a volcanic eruption. Design Population-based prospective cohort study. Setting In spring 2010, the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajökull erupted. Data were collected at 2 time points: in 2010 and 2013. P...
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crjcrbmj:10.1136/bmjopen-2016-011444 2024-09-15T18:05:22+00:00 Long-term health effects of the Eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption: a prospective cohort study in 2010 and 2013 Hlodversdottir, Heidrun Petursdottir, Gudrun Carlsen, Hanne Krage Gislason, Thorarinn Hauksdottir, Arna 2016 http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2016-011444 https://syndication.highwire.org/content/doi/10.1136/bmjopen-2016-011444 en eng BMJ BMJ Open volume 6, issue 9, page e011444 ISSN 2044-6055 2044-6055 journal-article 2016 crjcrbmj https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2016-011444 2024-08-22T04:11:17Z Objectives To examine the long-term development of physical and mental health following exposure to a volcanic eruption. Design Population-based prospective cohort study. Setting In spring 2010, the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajökull erupted. Data were collected at 2 time points: in 2010 and 2013. Participants Adult residents in areas close to the Eyjafjallajökull volcano (N=1096), divided according to exposure levels, and a non-exposed sample (n=475), with 80% participation rate in 2013. Main outcome measures Physical symptoms in the previous year (chronic) and previous month (recent), and psychological distress (General Health Questionnaire-12-item version, GHQ-12), perceived stress (Perceived Stress Scale, PSS-4) and post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms (Primary Care PTSD, PC-PTSD). Results In the exposed group, certain symptoms were higher in 2013 than in 2010, for example, morning phlegm during winter (OR 2.14; 95% CI 1.49 to 3.06), skin rash/eczema (OR 2.86; 95% CI 1.76 to 4.65), back pain (OR 1.45; 95% CI 1.03 to 2.05) and insomnia (OR 1.53; 95% CI 1.01 to 2.30), in addition to a higher prevalence of regular use of certain medications (eg, for asthma (OR 2.80; 95% CI 1.01 to 7.77)). PTSD symptoms decreased between 2010 and 2013 (OR 0.33; 95% CI 0.17 to 0.61), while the prevalence of psychological distress and perceived stress remained similar. In 2013, the exposed group showed a higher prevalence of various respiratory symptoms than did the non-exposed group, such as wheezing without a cold (high exposure OR 2.35; 95% CI 1.27 to 4.47) and phlegm (high exposure OR 2.81; 95% CI 1.48 to 5.55), some symptoms reflecting the degree of exposure (eg, nocturnal chest tightness (medium exposed OR 3.09; 95% CI 1.21 to 10.46; high exposed OR 3.42; 95% CI 1.30 to 11.79)). Conclusions The findings indicate that people exposed to a volcanic eruption, especially those most exposed, exhibit increased risk of certain symptoms 3–4 years after the eruption. Article in Journal/Newspaper Eyjafjallajökull The BMJ BMJ Open 6 9 e011444 |
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The BMJ |
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Objectives To examine the long-term development of physical and mental health following exposure to a volcanic eruption. Design Population-based prospective cohort study. Setting In spring 2010, the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajökull erupted. Data were collected at 2 time points: in 2010 and 2013. Participants Adult residents in areas close to the Eyjafjallajökull volcano (N=1096), divided according to exposure levels, and a non-exposed sample (n=475), with 80% participation rate in 2013. Main outcome measures Physical symptoms in the previous year (chronic) and previous month (recent), and psychological distress (General Health Questionnaire-12-item version, GHQ-12), perceived stress (Perceived Stress Scale, PSS-4) and post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms (Primary Care PTSD, PC-PTSD). Results In the exposed group, certain symptoms were higher in 2013 than in 2010, for example, morning phlegm during winter (OR 2.14; 95% CI 1.49 to 3.06), skin rash/eczema (OR 2.86; 95% CI 1.76 to 4.65), back pain (OR 1.45; 95% CI 1.03 to 2.05) and insomnia (OR 1.53; 95% CI 1.01 to 2.30), in addition to a higher prevalence of regular use of certain medications (eg, for asthma (OR 2.80; 95% CI 1.01 to 7.77)). PTSD symptoms decreased between 2010 and 2013 (OR 0.33; 95% CI 0.17 to 0.61), while the prevalence of psychological distress and perceived stress remained similar. In 2013, the exposed group showed a higher prevalence of various respiratory symptoms than did the non-exposed group, such as wheezing without a cold (high exposure OR 2.35; 95% CI 1.27 to 4.47) and phlegm (high exposure OR 2.81; 95% CI 1.48 to 5.55), some symptoms reflecting the degree of exposure (eg, nocturnal chest tightness (medium exposed OR 3.09; 95% CI 1.21 to 10.46; high exposed OR 3.42; 95% CI 1.30 to 11.79)). Conclusions The findings indicate that people exposed to a volcanic eruption, especially those most exposed, exhibit increased risk of certain symptoms 3–4 years after the eruption. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Hlodversdottir, Heidrun Petursdottir, Gudrun Carlsen, Hanne Krage Gislason, Thorarinn Hauksdottir, Arna |
spellingShingle |
Hlodversdottir, Heidrun Petursdottir, Gudrun Carlsen, Hanne Krage Gislason, Thorarinn Hauksdottir, Arna Long-term health effects of the Eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption: a prospective cohort study in 2010 and 2013 |
author_facet |
Hlodversdottir, Heidrun Petursdottir, Gudrun Carlsen, Hanne Krage Gislason, Thorarinn Hauksdottir, Arna |
author_sort |
Hlodversdottir, Heidrun |
title |
Long-term health effects of the Eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption: a prospective cohort study in 2010 and 2013 |
title_short |
Long-term health effects of the Eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption: a prospective cohort study in 2010 and 2013 |
title_full |
Long-term health effects of the Eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption: a prospective cohort study in 2010 and 2013 |
title_fullStr |
Long-term health effects of the Eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption: a prospective cohort study in 2010 and 2013 |
title_full_unstemmed |
Long-term health effects of the Eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption: a prospective cohort study in 2010 and 2013 |
title_sort |
long-term health effects of the eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption: a prospective cohort study in 2010 and 2013 |
publisher |
BMJ |
publishDate |
2016 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2016-011444 https://syndication.highwire.org/content/doi/10.1136/bmjopen-2016-011444 |
genre |
Eyjafjallajökull |
genre_facet |
Eyjafjallajökull |
op_source |
BMJ Open volume 6, issue 9, page e011444 ISSN 2044-6055 2044-6055 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2016-011444 |
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BMJ Open |
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6 |
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9 |
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e011444 |
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1810442931551600640 |