Queen's University Belfast

Academic Institute

Queen's University Belfast

Yes

250

This study is a NILS Distinct Linkage Project (DLP) which will investigate the relationship between ambient air pollution exposure and individual-level health outcomes in Northern Ireland. Health will be measured in three ways: (1) self-reported health measured at Census (2001 and 2011); (2) mortality from 2001 onwards; and (3) receipt of prescriptions used to treat certain health conditions from YEAR onwards. Pollution data are available annually between 2001 and 2016 at a 1x1 km grid square resolution, with pollution exposure assigned to each NILS member using anonymized address information. Prescriptions data are obtained from the Enhanced Prescription Database. By linking EPD data, this project builds on NILS Project 11X, a pilot version of the current project. The EPD linkage will include prescriptions for treatments of illnesses related to: (1) the cardiovascular system; (2) the respiratory system (3) Parkinson’s disease; (4) diabetes; (5) and dementia. While many studies have examined the effects of pollution on respiratory-related health, relatively few have considered conditions such as diabetes or neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. The linkage of data on prescriptions used to treat these illnesses will enable this project to contribute to these emerging health literatures.

The research will focus on the individual-level health implications of exposure to ambient air pollution. The study will consider a range of self-reported and prescriptions-based health outcomes to understand whether, firstly, air pollution exposure predicts health status and, secondly, whether air pollution exposure has more predictive power for certain health measures compared with others (e.g. is air pollution more strongly associated with ‘difficulty breathing’ compared with ‘general health’?). The use of linked prescriptions data from the Enhanced Prescribing Database means the project relates directly to Health and Social Care research. In broad terms, prescribing rates give insight into health burdens within the population at different points in time. This research will provide specific insight into how prescription rates for certain drugs vary across people exposed to different levels of ambient air pollution.

25/11/2019

TRE