Parkinson's Disease and Residential Exposure to Maneb and Paraquat From Agricultural Applications in the Central Valley of California

• Published in: American journal of epidemiology Vol. 169; no. 8; pp. 919 - 926
• Main Authors: Costello, Sadie, Cockburn, Myles, Bronstein, Jeff, Zhang, Xinbo, Ritz, Beate
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cary, NC Oxford University Press 15.04.2009; Oxford Publishing Limited (England)
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Agriculture - statistics & numerical data; Agrochemicals; Analysis. Health state; Biological and medical sciences; California - epidemiology; Case-Control Studies; Comorbidity; Degenerative and inherited degenerative diseases of the nervous system. Leukodystrophies. Prion diseases; Environment. Living conditions; Environmental Exposure - analysis; Environmental Exposure - statistics & numerical data; Environmental Monitoring - statistics & numerical data; Epidemiological Monitoring; Epidemiology; Exposure; Female; fungicides; General aspects; Geographic information systems; herbicides; Human exposure; Humans; industrial; Land use; Male; maneb; Maneb - analysis; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Miscellaneous; Neurology; Odds Ratio; Original Contributions; Paraquat; Paraquat - analysis; Parkinson disease; Parkinson Disease - epidemiology; Parkinson's disease; Pesticides; Population Surveillance; Public health. Hygiene; Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine; Remote sensing; Risk factors; Smoking - epidemiology; California; United States; North America; America; United States > US; USA, California, Central Valley; paraquat; pesticides; fungicides, industrial; Parkinson disease; geographic information systems; maneb; case-control studies; herbicides; Human; Nervous system diseases; case-control studies; fungicides; Pesticides; industrial; geographic information systems; herbicides; maneb; paraquat; Parkinson disease; pesticides; Residential neighborhoods; Case control study; Housing; Epidemiology; Fungicide; Herbicide; Cerebral disorder; Industry; Health and environment; Geographic information system; Central nervous system disease; Paraquat; Degenerative disease; Agriculture; Maneb; Public health; Extrapyramidal syndrome
• ISSN: 0002-9262; 1476-6256; 1476-6256
• DOI: 10.1093/aje/kwp006

Evidence from animal and cell models suggests that pesticides cause a neurodegenerative process leading to Parkinson's disease (PD). Human data are insufficient to support this claim for any specific pesticide, largely because of challenges in exposure assessment. The authors developed and validated an exposure assessment tool based on geographic information systems that integrated information from California Pesticide Use Reports and land-use maps to estimate historical exposure to agricultural pesticides in the residential environment. In 1998–2007, the authors enrolled 368 incident PD cases and 341 population controls from the Central Valley of California in a case-control study. They generated estimates for maneb and paraquat exposures incurred between 1974 and 1999. Exposure to both pesticides within 500 m of the home increased PD risk by 75% (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.13, 2.73). Persons aged ≤60 years at the time of diagnosis were at much higher risk when exposed to either maneb or paraquat alone (odds ratio = 2.27, 95% CI: 0.91, 5.70) or to both pesticides in combination (odds ratio = 4.17, 95% CI: 1.15, 15.16) in 1974–1989. This study provides evidence that exposure to a combination of maneb and paraquat increases PD risk, particularly in younger subjects and/or when exposure occurs at younger ages.