Health responses to a new high-voltage power line route: design of a quasi-experimental prospective field study in the Netherlands

BMC Public Health

Danielle RM Timmermans⁴  Fred Woudenberg²  Tjabe Smid¹  Liesbeth Claassen³  Jarry T Porsius³ 

[1] KLM Health Services, P.O. Box 7700 (SPL/AG), Schiphol, ZL 1117, The Netherlands;Municipal Health Service, P.O. Box 2200, Amsterdam, CE 1000, The Netherlands;Department of Public and Occupational Health, EMGO Institute for Health and Care Research, VU University Medical Center, P.O. Box 7057, Amsterdam, MB 1007, The Netherlands;National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, P.O. Box 13720, Bilthoven, BA, The Netherlands

关键词: Attribution;    Nocebo;    Environmental risk perception;    Modern health worries;    Environmental incidents;    Anxiety;    Environmental concerns;    Symptom reports;    Health complaints;    Power lines;   

Others  :  1132208
DOI  :  10.1186/1471-2458-14-237

 received in 2014-02-05, accepted in 2014-02-24,  发布年份 2014

【 摘 要 】

Background

New high-voltage power transmission lines will be introduced due to increasing demand for reliable and renewable energy supplies. Some residents associate non-specific health complaints with exposure to electromagnetic fields from nearby power lines. This study protocol describes the design and rationale of a prospective study investigating whether the introduction of a new power line triggers health responses in residents living nearby.

Methods/Design

The study is designed as a quasi-experimental field study with two pretests during the construction of a new power line route, and two posttests after it has been put into operation. Key outcomes are self-reported non-specific somatic and cognitive health complaints, and attribution of these health complaints to a power line. The main determinant is proximity to the new power line route. One member of every household (n = 2379) residing in close proximity (0-500 meters) to the overhead parts of a new power line route in the Netherlands is invited to participate, as well as a sample of household members (n = 2382) residing farther away (500-2000 meters). Multilevel analysis will be employed to test whether an increase in key outcome measures is related to proximity to the line. Longitudinal structural equation models will be applied to test to what extent health responses are mediated by psychosocial health mechanisms and moderated by negative oriented personality traits.

Discussion

This is the first study to investigate health responses to a new power line route in a prospective manner. The results will provide theoretical insight into psychosocial mechanisms operating during the introduction of an environmental health risk, and may offer suggestions to policymakers and other stakeholders for minimizing adverse health responses when introducing new high-voltage power lines.

【 授权许可】

   
2014 Porsius et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

【 图 表 】

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