Residential exposure to magnetic fields from transformer stations and risk of childhood leukemia

2023 · Mixed · Low evidence

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MixedLow evidencePaper 1256

Study snapshot

Publicationmanual · 2023

Study typecase_control

Reported directionMixed

Evidence ratingLow

Abstract

Residential exposure to magnetic fields from transformer stations and risk of childhood leukemia Malavolti M, Malagoli C, Wise LA, Poli M, Notari B, Taddei I, Fabbi S, Teggi S, Balboni E, Pancaldi A, Palazzi G, Vinceti M, Filippini T. Residential exposure to magnetic fields from transformer stations and risk of childhood leukemia. Environ Res. 2023 Dec 23:118043. doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2023.118043. Highlights A few children may be exposed to magnetic fields due to transformer stations at home. Transformer stations show little association with overall childhood leukemia risk. Children aged ≥5 years might have an increased leukemia risk from such exposure. Abstract Background: Several studies have documented an increased risk of leukemia among children exposed to magnetic fields, with some evidence of dose-response relation. However, findings in some studies have been inconsistent, and data on the effects of different sources of exposure are lacking. In this study, we evaluated the relation of childhood leukemia risk to exposure to magnetic fields from transformer stations. Methods: We conducted a population-based case-control study in a pediatric population of two Northern Italian provinces of Modena and Reggio Emilia. We included 182 registry-identified childhood leukemia cases diagnosed during 1998-2019 and 726 population controls match on age, sex and province. We assessed exposure by calculating distance from childhood residence to the nearest transformer station within a geographical information system, computing disease odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) using conditional logistic regression, adjusting for potential confounders. We evaluated exposure using two buffers (15m and 25m radius) and assessed two case groups: leukemia (all subtypes) and acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Results: Residing within 15 m of a transformer station (vs. ≥15 m) was not appreciably associated with risk of leukemia (all subtypes) or ALL. We found similar results using a less stringent exposure buffer (25 m). Among children aged ≥5 years, the multivariable ORs were 1.3 (95% CI 0.1-12.8) for leukemia and 1.3 (95% CI 0.1-12.4) for ALL using the 15 m buffer, while they were 1.7 (95% CI 0.4-7.0) for leukemia and 0.6 (95% CI 0.1-4.8) for ALL using the 25 m buffer. Conclusions: While we found no overall association between residential proximity to transformer stations and childhood leukemia, there was some evidence for elevated risks of childhood leukemia among children aged ≥5 years. Precision was limited by the low numbers of exposed children. Open access paper: sciencedirect.com

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AI evidence extraction

Structured fields below were generated from the paper’s abstract and metadata to make the evidence easier to inspect. Automated extraction may be incomplete or incorrect; verify important details against the original paper.

Study typecase_control

Effect directionmixed

PopulationPediatric population in two Northern Italian provinces (Modena and Reggio Emilia); childhood leukemia cases diagnosed 1998–2019 and population controls matched on age, sex, and province

Sample size908

ExposureELF

Evidence strengthLowConfidence: 78% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

In this population-based case-control study (182 cases; 726 controls), residing within 15 m (vs. ≥15 m) of a transformer station was not appreciably associated with risk of childhood leukemia (all subtypes) or ALL; similar results were reported using a 25 m buffer. In analyses restricted to children aged ≥5 years, odds ratios were elevated for leukemia in some comparisons, but confidence intervals were very wide and results were imprecise due to few exposed children.

Outcomes measured

Childhood leukemia (all subtypes)
Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL)

Limitations

Exposure assessed via residential distance to nearest transformer station (proxy measure; no direct magnetic-field measurements reported)
Low numbers of exposed children leading to limited precision and very wide confidence intervals
Potential for residual confounding (authors note adjustment for potential confounders but details not provided in abstract)

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "case_control",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "ELF",
    "source": "transformer station",
    "frequency_mhz": null,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": null
  },
  "population": "Pediatric population in two Northern Italian provinces (Modena and Reggio Emilia); childhood leukemia cases diagnosed 1998–2019 and population controls matched on age, sex, and province",
  "sample_size": 908,
  "outcomes": [
    "Childhood leukemia (all subtypes)",
    "Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL)"
  ],
  "main_findings": "In this population-based case-control study (182 cases; 726 controls), residing within 15 m (vs. ≥15 m) of a transformer station was not appreciably associated with risk of childhood leukemia (all subtypes) or ALL; similar results were reported using a 25 m buffer. In analyses restricted to children aged ≥5 years, odds ratios were elevated for leukemia in some comparisons, but confidence intervals were very wide and results were imprecise due to few exposed children.",
  "effect_direction": "mixed",
  "limitations": [
    "Exposure assessed via residential distance to nearest transformer station (proxy measure; no direct magnetic-field measurements reported)",
    "Low numbers of exposed children leading to limited precision and very wide confidence intervals",
    "Potential for residual confounding (authors note adjustment for potential confounders but details not provided in abstract)"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "low",
  "confidence": 0.78,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "childhood leukemia",
    "acute lymphoblastic leukemia",
    "transformer stations",
    "residential proximity",
    "magnetic fields",
    "ELF",
    "case-control",
    "Italy",
    "GIS",
    "conditional logistic regression"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "transformer-stations",
      "weight": 0.9,
      "reason": "Study evaluates residential proximity to transformer stations as a source of magnetic-field exposure."
    }
  ]
}

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AI-extracted fields are generated from the abstract and metadata and may be incomplete or incorrect. This material is for informational purposes and is not medical advice.

Identifiers and source

DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2023.118043
PubMed: Not supplied

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