Observational studyBMJ (Clinical research ed.)2015
The relation between past exposure to fine particulate air pollution and prevalent anxiety: observational cohort study.
Observational study in BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 124 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
124 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Air pollution, depressive and anxiety disorders, and brain effects: A systematic review.Neurotoxicology · 2022Pooled it
- Air Pollution (Particulate Matter) Exposure and Associations with Depression, Anxiety, Bipolar, Psychosis and Suicide Risk: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Environmental health perspectives · 2019Pooled it
- Characteristics of cohort studies of long-term exposure to PMEnvironmental science and pollution research international · 2019Pooled it
- Concentration-dependent increase in symptoms due to diesel exhaust in a controlled human exposure study.Particle and fibre toxicology · 2022Trial
- The Salutary Influence of Forest Bathing on Elderly Patients with Chronic Heart Failure.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2017Trial
- Impacts of contemporaneous air pollution exposure on cognitive performance in Kenya.Journal of health economics · 2026Article
- Cognitive Reserve and Psychological Well-Being in Aging Population of Community-Dwellers in Spain.Brain and behavior · 2026Article
- Revisiting 'environmental effects': Directions for multidisciplinary investigations of air quality and psychopathology.Clinical psychological science : a journal of the Association for Psychological Science · 2026Article
- Associations between residential segregation, ambient air pollution, and hippocampal features in recent trauma survivors.Translational psychiatry · 2026Article
- Long-term temperature variability and cognitive performance among mid-to-older-aged adults in China.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Article
- Differential association between ambient PMiScience · 2026Article
- Article
- Article
- Fine particulate matter (PMFrontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Long-term PM2.5 exposure and mental health disparities: A prospective analysis of the All of Us Research Program.Environmental research · 2025Article
- Evaluating short-term air pollution-related mental health resilience using a directional network.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Association of mold exposure and solid household fuel use with depression and anxiety among older adults in China.Environmental health : a global access science source · 2025Article
- Exposure Measurement Error Correction in Longitudinal Studies With Discrete Outcomes.Statistics in medicine · 2025Article
- The Association between Multiple Environmental Exposures and Symptoms of Generalized Anxiety Disorder in a Prospective, US-Based Cohort Study.Environmental health perspectives · 2025Article
64 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveTo determine whether higher past exposure to particulate air pollution is associated with prevalent high symptoms of anxiety.
designObservational cohort study.
settingNurses' Health Study.
participants71,271 women enrolled in the Nurses' Health Study residing throughout the contiguous United States who had valid estimates on exposure to particulate matter for at least one exposure period of interest and data on anxiety symptoms.
main outcome measuresMeaningfully high symptoms of anxiety, defined as a score of 6 points or greater on the phobic anxiety subscale of the Crown-Crisp index, administered in 2004.
resultsThe 71,271 eligible women were aged between 57 and 85 years (mean 70 years) at the time of assessment of anxiety symptoms, with a prevalence of high anxiety symptoms of 15%. Exposure to particulate matter was characterized using estimated average exposure to particulate matter <2.5 μm in diameter (PM2.5) and 2.5 to 10 μm in diameter (PM2.5-10) in the one month, three months, six months, one year, and 15 years prior to assessment of anxiety symptoms, and residential distance to the nearest major road two years prior to assessment. Significantly increased odds of high anxiety symptoms were observed with higher exposure to PM2.5 for multiple averaging periods (for example, odds ratio per 10 µg/m(3) increase in prior one month average PM2.5: 1.12, 95% confidence interval 1.06 to 1.19; in prior 12 month average PM2.5: 1.15, 1.06 to 1.26). Models including multiple exposure windows suggested short term averaging periods were more relevant than long term averaging periods. There was no association between anxiety and exposure to PM2.5-10. Residential proximity to major roads was not related to anxiety symptoms in a dose dependent manner.
conclusionsExposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) was associated with high symptoms of anxiety, with more recent exposures potentially more relevant than more distant exposures. Research evaluating whether reductions in exposure to ambient PM2.5 would reduce the population level burden of clinically relevant symptoms of anxiety is warranted.
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