Heavily congested highway correlates with higher rates of asthma

Researchers at SUNY Downstate Medical Center and Lutheran Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York, found that living near a heavily congested highway correlates with a higher presence of asthma.

In a study published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, the researchers found higher rates of asthma among those living closer to Interstate 278, near a portion known locally as the Gowanus Expressway, and lower rates of disease in those living in the same community but farther from the Interstate.

SUNY Downstate's Maria-Anna Vastardi, MD, said, "Our participants were randomly recruited and we observed that the patients who reported asthma live significantly closer to the Gowanus Expressway, compared to the healthy controls who live in the same area, but at a longer distance from the Gowanus."

The findings indicate that proximity to a heavily trafficked highway correlates with the presence of asthma in adults, but not with seasonal allergy, according to Dr. Vastardi. The results suggest that vehicle emissions may increase the risk for developing inflammatory lung disease in adults.

SOURCE SUNY Downstate Medical Center