Objectives Epidemiological studies of air pollution on cardiovascular health show associations of cardiac mortality and admissions with exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)) at low concentrations. These associations could be causal or NO(2) could be acting as a surrogate measure for another air pollutant, most likely ultrafine particles. No studies of cardiac susceptibility to acute exposure to NO(2) have been undertaken. Methods Randomised controlled exposures to NO(2) (400 ppb for 1 h) and air in subjects with coronary heart disease and impaired left ventricular systolic function not taking beta adrenoceptor blocking drugs. Results There were no significant changes in heart rate, blood pressure, leucocyte coping capacity or any heart rate variability measure following NO(2) exposure compared with air. Conclusion These findings suggest that NO(2) does not affect heart rate variability at these concentrations (which are high for urban background levels) and in the absence of other pollutants. While a synergistic effect has not been ruled out, these data lend support to the idea that the epidemiological data associating cardiac outcomes with NO(2) are more likely due to an associated pollutant rather than NO(2) itself.
AD - Institute of Occupational & Environmental Medicine, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK; j.g.ayres@bham.ac.uk. AN - 22693269 BT - Occupational and Environmental Medicine DP - NLM ET - 2012/06/14 LA - eng M1 - 8 N1 - Scaife, AlisonBarclay, JustinHillis, Graham SSrinivasan, JanakiMacdonald, David WRoss, John A SAyres, Jon GEnglandOccup Environ Med. 2012 Aug;69(8):587-91. Epub 2012 Jun 12. N2 -Objectives Epidemiological studies of air pollution on cardiovascular health show associations of cardiac mortality and admissions with exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)) at low concentrations. These associations could be causal or NO(2) could be acting as a surrogate measure for another air pollutant, most likely ultrafine particles. No studies of cardiac susceptibility to acute exposure to NO(2) have been undertaken. Methods Randomised controlled exposures to NO(2) (400 ppb for 1 h) and air in subjects with coronary heart disease and impaired left ventricular systolic function not taking beta adrenoceptor blocking drugs. Results There were no significant changes in heart rate, blood pressure, leucocyte coping capacity or any heart rate variability measure following NO(2) exposure compared with air. Conclusion These findings suggest that NO(2) does not affect heart rate variability at these concentrations (which are high for urban background levels) and in the absence of other pollutants. While a synergistic effect has not been ruled out, these data lend support to the idea that the epidemiological data associating cardiac outcomes with NO(2) are more likely due to an associated pollutant rather than NO(2) itself.
PY - 2012 SN - 1470-7926 (Electronic)1351-0711 (Linking) SP - 587 EP - 91 T2 - Occupational and Environmental Medicine TI - Lack of effect of nitrogen dioxide exposure on heart rate variability in patients with stable coronary heart disease and impaired left ventricular systolic function VL - 69 ER -