Association of neighborhood greenness with severity of hand, foot, and mouth disease.

backgroundHand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is an epidemic infectious disease in China. Relationship of neighborhood greenness with human health has been widely studied, yet its association with severe HFMD has not yet been established.

methodsIndividual HFMD cases that occurred in Guangdong province in 2010 were recruited and were categorised into mild and severe cases. Residential greenness was assessed using global land cover data. We used a case-control design (i.e., severe versus mild cases) with logistic regression models to assess the association between neighborhood greenness and HFMD severity. Effect modification was also examined.

resultsA total of 131,606 cases were included, of whom 130,840 were mild cases and 766 were severe cases. In an unadjusted model, HFMD severity increased with higher proportion of neighborhood greenness (odds ratio, OR = 1.029, 95%CI: 1.009-1.050). The greenness-HFMD severity association remained (OR = 1.031, 95%CI: 1.006-1.057) after adjusting for population density, demographic variables and climate variables. Both population density (Z = 4.148, P < 0.001) and relative humidity (Z = -4.297, P < 0.001) modified the association between neighborhood greenness and HFMD severity. In the stratified analyses, a protective effect (OR = 0.769, 95%CI: 0.687-0.860) of greenness on HFMD severity were found in the subgroup of population density being lower than and equal to 5 ln(no.)/km

conclusionsOur study found that HFMD severity is associated with the neighborhood greenness in Guangdong, China. This study provides evidence on developing a prevention strategy of discouraging the high-risk groups from going to the crowded green spaces during the epidemic period.