Huss et al study of Alzheimer's disease in Switzerland

We provide a separate summary of the scientific position on neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's disease.  This page gives more information on one important study that was published in the American Journal of Epidemiology in 2008, of neurodegenerative disorders in Switzerland in relation to proximity to power lines. See the press release by the university concerned.

It reports an association between living within 50 m of a power line (particularly for longer periods) and Alzheimer's disease but not ALS, Parkinson's disease or multiple sclerosis.

Results for Alzheimer's disease

The relative risks for subjects living at various distances from the power lines are shown here (for the subjects who had lived there at least 15 years):

graph of Huss et al distance results

And the relative risks for various durations of residence are shown here, for subjects living within 50 m:

graph showing Huss et al duration results

Abstract

Am J Epidemiol. 2008 Nov 5. [Epub ahead of print]
Residence Near Power Lines and Mortality From Neurodegenerative Diseases: Longitudinal Study of the Swiss Population.
Huss A, Spoerri A, Egger M, Röösli M; for the Swiss National Cohort Study.

The relation between residential magnetic field exposure from power lines and mortality from neurodegenerative conditions was analyzed among 4.7 million persons of the Swiss National Cohort (linking mortality and census data), covering the period 2000-2005. Cox proportional hazard models were used to analyze the relation of living in the proximity of 220-380 kV power lines and the risk of death from neurodegenerative diseases, with adjustment for a range of potential confounders. Overall, the adjusted hazard ratio for Alzheimer's disease in persons living within 50 m of a 220-380 kV power line was 1.24 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.80, 1.92) compared with persons who lived at a distance of 600 m or more. There was a dose-response relation with respect to years of residence in the immediate vicinity of power lines and Alzheimer's disease: Persons living at least 5 years within 50 m had an adjusted hazard ratio of 1.51 (95% CI: 0.91, 2.51), increasing to 1.78 (95% CI: 1.07, 2.96) with at least 10 years and to 2.00 (95% CI: 1.21, 3.33) with at least 15 years. The pattern was similar for senile dementia. There was little evidence for an increased risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, or multiple sclerosis.