Biomarkers of Airway Disease, Barrett’s and Underdiagnosed Reflux Noninvasively (BAD-BURN) in World Trade Center Exposed Firefighters: A Case-Control Observational Study Protocol

Details

• Personal Author:
  Crowley G ; Fallahzadeh A ; Francois F ; Grunig G ; Javed U ; Khan AR ; Kim DH ; Kwon S ; Li Y ; Liu M ; Nolan A ; Podury S ; Prezant DJ ; Schwartz T ; Veerappan A ; Zeig-Owens R ; Zhou J
• Description:
  Background: Particulate matter exposure (PM) is a cause of aerodigestive disease globally. The destruction of the World Trade Center (WTC) exposed first responders and inhabitants of New York City to WTC-PM and caused obstructive airways disease (OAD), gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and Barrett's Esophagus (BE). GERD not only diminishes health-related quality of life but also gives rise to complications that extend beyond the scope of BE. GERD can incite or exacerbate allergies, sinusitis, bronchitis, and asthma. Disease features of the aerodigestive axis can overlap, often necessitating more invasive diagnostic testing and treatment modalities. This presents a need to develop novel non-invasive biomarkers of GERD, BE, airway hyperreactivity (AHR), treatment efficacy, and severity of symptoms. Methods: Our observational case-cohort study will leverage the longitudinally phenotyped Fire Department of New York (FDNY)-WTC exposed cohort to identify Biomarkers of Airway Disease, Barrett's and Underdiagnosed Reflux Noninvasively (BAD-BURN). Our study population consists of n = 4,192 individuals from which we have randomly selected a sub-cohort control group (n = 837). We will then recruit subgroups of i. AHR only ii. GERD only iii. BE iv. GERD/BE and AHR overlap or v. No GERD or AHR, from the sub-cohort control group. We will then phenotype and examine non-invasive biomarkers of these subgroups to identify under-diagnosis and/or treatment efficacy. The findings may further contribute to the development of future biologically plausible therapies, ultimately enhance patient care and quality of life. Discussion: Although many studies have suggested interdependence between airway and digestive diseases, the causative factors and specific mechanisms remain unclear. The detection of the disease is further complicated by the invasiveness of conventional GERD diagnosis procedures and the limited availability of disease-specific biomarkers. The management of reflux is important, as it directly increases risk of cancer and negatively impacts quality of life. Therefore, it is vital to develop novel noninvasive disease markers that can effectively phenotype, facilitate early diagnosis of premalignant disease and identify potential therapeutic targets to improve patient care. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Air Pollutants, Occupational Biomarkers Emergency Responders Firefighters Occupational Health Particulate Matter Safety September 11 Terrorist Attacks
• Keywords:
  Air Pollutants Airway Hyperreactivity Ambient Particulate Matter Author Keywords: Aerodigestive Barrett's Esophagus Case Control Studies Fire Fighters First Responders Gastro-esophageal Reflux Disease Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease GERD Particulate Particulates World Trade Center WTC

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• ISSN:
  1471-230X
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement ; Contract
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  New York ; OSHA Region 2
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  24
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20070001
• Citation:
  BMC Gastroenterol 2024 Aug; 24:255
• Contact Point Address:
  Anna Nolan, Department of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, New York University Grossman School of Medicine (NYUGSoM), New Bellevue, 16 North Room 20 (Lab), 462 1st Avenue, New York, NY, 10016, USA
• Email:
  anna.nolan@med.nyu.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2024
• Performing Organization:
  New York University School of Medicine
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20210701
• Source Full Name:
  BMC Gastroenterology
• End Date:
  20260630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:837b619fcede901b9e62d5de58bc65fb2d1fc9ae0e2605a47f0821910c51b80fff0b325bfa50f953ec5c1290620ebff17fb4bc95f1b8f7678caa1fb6ab6f9e6a
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/208312/cdc_208312_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 3.72 MB ]