This study investigated mortality in relation to neighborhood levels of income and air pollution in a cohort of 5,000 people who had been referred for pulmonary function testing in the urban area of Hamilton-Burlington in southern Ontario.

Income was estimated using census data, and average neighborhood levels of total suspended particulates and sulfur dioxide were estimated by interpolating data from the monitoring network.

Mean pollution levels tended to be higher in the lower-income neighborhoods, and these neighborhoods also had higher mortality rates. While biologic risk factors were not controlled for, investigators reported that “two of the broader determinants of health — income and air pollution levels — were important correlates of mortality in this population.”

Finkelstein, M.M., Jerrett, M. DeLuca, P., Finkelstein, N., Verma, D.K., Chapman, K., and Sears, M.R. Relation between Income, Air Pollution and Mortality: A Cohort Study. Canadian Medical Association Journal, Vol. 169, No. 5, September 2, 2003.

The National Library of Medicine [www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/] offers the full article online.

This entry was posted on Sunday, January 4th, 2004 at 12:42 pm and is filed under 2003.