Studying the effects of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons on peripheral arterial disease in the United States Original Research Article

Purpose Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are a group of prevalent pollutants which are produced by incomplete combustion of organic materials such as coal, fuel, tobacco smoking and food cooking. The associations between exposures to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and peripheral arterial disease (PAD) have not been well studied. Methods We used the 2001-2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) to investigate the associations between eight monohydroxy urinary metabolites of four PAHs and PAD. Results In a logistic regression model, subjects within the middle and highest tertiles of fluorene metabolites, 2-hydroxyfluorene (2-FLUO) and 3-hydroxyfluorene (3-FLUO), and phenanthrene metabolites, 1-hydroxyphenanthrene (1-PHEN) and 2-hydroxyphenanthrene (2-PHEN), had significantly higher prevalence of PAD as compared to subjects within the lowest tertile after adjusting for cigarette smoking, diabetes mellitus and other covariates (For 2-FLUO, the 3rd tertile: OR = 2.22, 95% CI = 1.13–4.37, p for trend = 0.02; For 3-FLUO, the 3rd tertile: OR = 2.36, 95% CI: 1.16–4.77, p for trend = 0.02; For 1-PHEN, the 3rd tertile: OR = 1.84, 95% CI: 1.01–3.37, p for trend = 0.04; For 2-PHEN, the 3rd tertile: OR = 1.76, 95% CI: 1.07–2.88, p for trend = 0.03). Conclusions Our findings suggest that exposure to PAHs may increase the risk of PAD. Further studies are necessary to explore the associations between PAHs and PAD.