A rare brain disease has been detected more frequently near water-polluting enterprises
A rare neurodegenerative disease was recorded more frequently in people living near industrial enterprises that discharge harmful substances into the water. According to a new study, the identified link varied depending on the type of pollutants, the distance of the home from the enterprise, and how long the person had lived at that address. However, these results do not prove that pollution directly causes the disease.
A rare brain disorder was detected more frequently near water-polluting enterprises
Researchers from Harvard Medical School and other scientific institutions in the US and the UK have investigated a possible link between living near industrial enterprises and progressive supranuclear palsy.
This disease, internationally abbreviated as PSP, is also known as Steele–Richardson–Olszewski syndrome. It is a rare disorder accompanied by progressive damage to nerve cells, impairing movement, balance, and other functions of the nervous system. A complete cure for it has not yet been found.
PSP belongs to a group of disorders known as atypical parkinsonism. Some of its symptoms resemble Parkinson's disease, but it usually progresses faster and responds differently to treatment.
The exact causes of the disease are not yet known. Scientists are studying exposure to toxic substances as one of the potential risk factors.
The new study used data from the UK Biobank. Participants in this large-scale project underwent medical examinations, and their health was subsequently tracked over a long period.
The analysis included 221 people diagnosed with PSP. Their data was compared with a control group of 2,249 participants matched by age and sex who were not diagnosed with this disease.
The average age of participants in the group with diagnosed PSP was 63 years. Women made up 41.2 percent of them.
To assess potential exposure to pollutants, scientists compared the participants' residential addresses with 2007 data from the European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register.
This register records industrial facilities that report on their release of various substances into the environment. Among them were wastewater treatment plants, chemical enterprises, thermal power stations, and intensive aquaculture farms.
People who lived at the specified address for less than one year were excluded from the analysis.
The most significant link was observed in those living near enterprises associated with four categories of pollutants. The calculations also took into account the age, sex, education level, and other factors of the participants.