American Journal of Cardiology
Volume 104, Issue 5 , Pages 665-670 , 1 September 2009

T-Wave Alternans, Air Pollution and Traffic in High-Risk Subjects

  • Antonella Zanobetti, PhD

      Affiliations

    • Exposure, Epidemiology and Risk Program, Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author: Tel: 617-384-8751; fax: 617-384-8859
  • ,
  • Peter H. Stone, MD

      Affiliations

    • Cardiology Division, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
  • ,
  • Frank E. Speizer, MD

      Affiliations

    • Exposure, Epidemiology and Risk Program, Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts
    • Channing Laboratory, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
  • ,
  • Joel D. Schwartz, PhD

      Affiliations

    • Exposure, Epidemiology and Risk Program, Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts
  • ,
  • Brent A. Coull, PhD

      Affiliations

    • Exposure, Epidemiology and Risk Program, Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts
    • Environmental Statistics Program, Department of Biostatistics, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts
  • ,
  • Helen H. Suh, ScD

      Affiliations

    • Exposure, Epidemiology and Risk Program, Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts
  • ,
  • Bruce D. Nearing, PhD

      Affiliations

    • Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
  • ,
  • Murray A. Mittleman, MD, DrPH

      Affiliations

    • Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
  • ,
  • Richard L. Verrier, PhD

      Affiliations

    • Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
  • ,
  • Diane R. Gold, MD, MPH

      Affiliations

    • Exposure, Epidemiology and Risk Program, Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts
    • Channing Laboratory, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts

Received 23 March 2009 ,Revised 26 April 2009 ,Accepted 26 April 2009.

References 

  1. Peters A, von Klot S, Heier M, Trentinaglia I, Hormann A, Wichmann HE, et al. Exposure to traffic and the onset of myocardial infarction. N Engl J Med. 2004;351:1721–1730
  2. Albert CM, Rosenthal L, Calkins H, Steinberg JS, Ruskin JN, Wang P, et al. Driving and implantable cardioverter-defibrillator shocks for ventricular arrhythmias: results from the TOVA study. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2007;50:2233–2240
  3. Chuang KJ, Coull BA, Zanobetti A, Suh H, Schwartz J, Stone PH, et al. Particulate air pollution as a risk factor for ST-segment depression in patients with coronary artery disease. Circulation. 2008;118:1314–1320
  4. Nearing BD, Verrier RL. Modified moving average analysis of T-wave alternans to predict ventricular fibrillation with high accuracy. J Appl Physiol. 2002;92:541–549
  5. Verrier RL, Nearing BD, Kwaku KF. Noninvasive sudden death risk stratification by ambulatory ECG-based T-wave alternans analysis: evidence and methodological guidelines. Ann Noninvasive Electrocardiol. 2005;10:110–120
  6. Eilers PHC, Marx BD. Flexible smoothing with B-splines and penalties (with discussion). Stat Sci. 1996;11:89–121
  7. Verrier RL, Nearing BD, La Rovere MT, Pinna GD, Mittleman MA, Bigger JT, et al. Ambulatory electrocardiogram-based tracking of T wave alternans in postmyocardial infarction patients to assess risk of cardiac arrest or arrhythmic death. J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol. 2003;14:705–711
  8. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Air Quality Criteria for Particulate Matter Washington, District of Columbia: United States Environmental Protection Agency. 2004;
  9. Anderson JL, Adams CD, Antman EM, Bridges CR, Califf RM, Casey DE, et al. ACC/AHA 2007 guidelines for the management of patients with unstable angina/non ST-elevation myocardial infarction: a report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Practice Guidelines (Writing Committee to Revise the 2002 Guidelines for the Management of Patients With Unstable Angina/Non ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction): developed in collaboration with the American College of Emergency Physicians, the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions, and the Society of Thoracic Surgeons: endorsed by the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation and the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. Circulation. 2007;116:148–304
  10. Henneberger A, Zareba W, Ibald-Mulli A, Ruckerl R, Cyrys J, Couderc JP, et al. Repolarization changes induced by air pollution in ischemic heart disease patients. Environ Health Perspect. 2005;113:440–446
  11. Yue W, Schneider A, Stolzel M, Ruckerl R, Cyrys J, Pan X, et al. Ambient source-specific particles are associated with prolonged repolarization and increased levels of inflammation in male coronary artery disease patients. Mutat Res. 2007;621:50–60
  12. Nearing BD, Verrier RL. Progressive increases in complexity of T-wave oscillations herald ischemia-induced ventricular fibrillation. Circ Res. 2002;91:727–732
  13. Rosenlund M, Picciotto S, Forastiere F, Stafoggia M, Perucci CA. Traffic-related air pollution in relation to incidence and prognosis of coronary heart disease. Epidemiology. 2008;19:121–128
  14. Muller JE, Ludmer PL, Willich SN, Tofler GH, Aylmer G, Klangos I, et al. Circadian variation in the frequency of sudden cardiac death. Circulation. 1987;75:131–138
  15. Park SK, O'Neill MS, Vokonas PS, Sparrow D, Schwartz J. Effects of air pollution on heart rate variability: the VA normative aging study. Environ Health Perspect. 2005;113:304–309
  16. Chuang KJ, Chan CC, Su TC, Lee CT, Tang CS. The effect of urban air pollution on inflammation, oxidative stress, coagulation, and autonomic dysfunction in young adults. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2007;176:370–376
  17. Adamkiewicz G, Ebelt S, Syring M, Slater J, Speizer FE, Schwartz J, et al. Association between air pollution exposure and exhaled nitric oxide in an elderly population. Thorax. 2004;59:204–209
  18. Adar SD, Adamkiewicz G, Gold DR, Schwartz J, Coull BA, Suh H. Ambient and microenvironmental particles and exhaled nitric oxide before and after a group bus trip. Environ Health Perspect. 2007;115:507–512
  19. Peters A, Veronesi B, Calderon-Garciduenas L, Gehr P, Chen LC, Geiser M, et al. Translocation and potential neurological effects of fine and ultrafine particles: a critical update. Part Fibre Toxicol. 2006;3:13
  20. Chahine T, Baccarelli A, Litonjua A, Wright RO, Suh H, Gold DR, et al. Particulate air pollution, oxidative stress genes, and heart rate variability in an elderly cohort. Environ Health Perspect. 2007;115:1617–1622
  21. Verrier RL, Kumar K, Nearing BD. Basis for sudden cardiac death prediction by T-wave alternans from an integrative physiology perspective. Heart Rhythm. 2009;6:416–422
  22. Gold DR, Litonjua A, Schwartz J, Lovett E, Larson A, Nearing B, et al. Ambient pollution and heart rate variability. Circulation. 2000;101:1267–1273
  23. Schwartz J, Litonjua A, Suh H, Verrier M, Zanobetti A, Syring M, et al. Traffic related pollution and heart rate variability in a panel of elderly subjects. Thorax. 2005;60:455–461
  24. Gold DR, Litonjua AA, Zanobetti A, Coull BA, Schwartz J, MacCallum G, et al. Air pollution and ST-segment depression in elderly subjects. Environ Health Perspect. 2005;113:883–887

 This work was supported in part by Grant P01 ES009825, NIEHS-00002, from the National Institute of Environment Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina; Grant R832416-01-0 from the Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, District of Columbia.

PII: S0002-9149(09)01014-5

doi: 10.1016/j.amjcard.2009.04.046

American Journal of Cardiology
Volume 104, Issue 5 , Pages 665-670 , 1 September 2009