Long-Term Lower Respiratory Symptoms among World Trade Center Health Registry Enrollees Following Hurricane Sandy

Sean H. Locke (), Lisa M. Gargano, Howard E. Alper and Jennifer Brite
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Sean H. Locke: World Trade Center Health Registry, Division of Epidemiology, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Long Island City, NY 11101, USA
Lisa M. Gargano: World Trade Center Health Registry, Division of Epidemiology, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Long Island City, NY 11101, USA
Howard E. Alper: World Trade Center Health Registry, Division of Epidemiology, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Long Island City, NY 11101, USA
Jennifer Brite: Department of Health & Human Performance, York College of City University of New York (CUNY), New York, NY 11451, USA

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 21, 1-7

Abstract: Several studies showed an association between lower respiratory tract symptoms (LRS) and exposure to the 9/11 terrorist attack. However, few studies have examined the long-term impact of natural disasters on those with prior respiratory distress. The present study aims to assess the impact of Hurricane Sandy on persistent LRS among people exposed to the World Trade Center (WTC) terrorist attack. The analytic sample consisted of WTC Health Registry enrollees who completed survey waves 1, 3, and 4 and the Hurricane Sandy Survey and did not report LRS before the WTC terrorist attack. The log binomial was used to assess the association between the impact of Hurricane Sandy and persistent LRS. Of 3277 enrollees, 1111 (33.9%) reported persistent LRS post-Sandy. Participants of older age, males, lower household income, current smokers, and those with previous asthma were more likely to report persistent LRS. In separate adjusted models, multiple Sandy-related inhalation exposures (relative risk (RR): 1.2, 95% CI: 1.06–1.37), Sandy-related PTSD (RR: 1.27, 95% CI: 1.15–1.4), and Sandy LRS (RR: 1.64, 95% CI: 1.48–1.81) were associated with persistent LRS post-Sandy. Our findings suggest that respiratory protection is important for everyone performing reconstruction and clean-up work after a natural disaster, particularly among those with previous respiratory exposures.

Keywords: 9/11 disaster; lower respiratory symptoms; PTSD; World Trade Center (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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