Follow-up of schoolchildren in the vicinity of a coal-fired power plant

Conference · · Archives of Environmental Health; (United States)

OSTI ID:5885657

Goren, A; Hellman, S; Brenner, S

A study was conducted as part of a health monitoring system set up near a 1,400 MW coal-fired power plant in Israel. Second-and fifth-grade schoolchildren were followed up every 3 y; they performed pulmonary function tests (PFT) and their parents completed ATSNHLI health questionnaires. Among the cohort of second graders who, in 1983, lived in the more polluted area, a significant increase in the prevalence of some respiratory symptoms (e.g., cough, sputum, wheezing with and without cold, and wheezing accompanied by shortness of breath) was evident in 1986. The prevalence of asthma among fifth graders in this area doubles compared with the prevalence when they were second graders. Among the children from the older cohort (fifth graders in 1983) who lived in the more polluted community, a similar-although milder-trend was observed. This was especially true for the increase prevalence of asthma in 1986 compared with 1983 (13.9% vs. 8.1%, respectively). Annual increases in PFT in the four groups of children (boys, and girls from both cohorts) were found to be higher in the more polluted community (especially in the younger cohort) compared with the two other communities. The discrepancy between the increased prevalence of respiratory symptoms and diseases, and the higher annual increases in PFT among children from the more polluted community, may be partly attributable to a differential annual increase in height and to different distribution of background variables (e.g. socioeconomic status, passive smoking, heating, and respiratory diseases among parents) in the three communities.

• OSTI ID: 5885657
• Report Number(s): CONF-9008208--
• Conference Information: Journal Name: Archives of Environmental Health; (United States) Journal Volume: 46:3
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT
016000 -- Coal
Lignite
& Peat-- Health & Safety
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
540120 -- Environment
Atmospheric-- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport-- (1990-)
560300* -- Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
AGE GROUPS
ASIA
ASTHMA
CHILDREN
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
DISEASES
ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURE
EPIDEMIOLOGY
FOSSIL-FUEL POWER PLANTS
HAZARDS
HEALTH HAZARDS
INSTITUTIONAL FACTORS
ISRAEL
MEDICAL SURVEILLANCE
MIDDLE EAST
POWER PLANTS
RESPIRATORY SYSTEM DISEASES
SOCIO-ECONOMIC FACTORS
SURVEILLANCE
SYMPTOMS
THERMAL POWER PLANTS