Fine particulate matter from burning oil and gas and associated neurological symptoms among Deepwater Horizon oil spill cleanup workers

Christina L Norris; Dale P Sandler; Gregory C Pratt; Mark R Stenzel; Patricia A Stewart; W Braxton Jackson 2nd; Kate E Christenbury; Emily J Werder; Caroline P Groth; Sudipto Banerjee; Kaitlyn G Lawrence; Lawrence S Engel

doi:10.1039/d4em00469h

Fine particulate matter from burning oil and gas and associated neurological symptoms among Deepwater Horizon oil spill cleanup workers

Environ Sci Process Impacts. 2025 Jan 16. doi: 10.1039/d4em00469h. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA. [email protected].
² Epidemiology Branch, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA.
³ Division of Environmental Health, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.
⁴ Exposure Assessment Applications, LLC, Arlington, Virginia, USA.
⁵ Stewart Exposure Assessments, LLC, Arlington, Virginia, USA.
⁶ Social & Scientific Systems, Inc., Durham, North Carolina, USA.
⁷ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, West Virginia University School of Public Health, Morgantown, WV, USA.
⁸ Department of Biostatistics, University of California, Los Angeles Fielding School of Public Health, Los Angeles, CA, USA.

PMID: 39815820
DOI: 10.1039/d4em00469h

Abstract

Burning and flaring of oil and gas following the 2010 Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill generated high airborne concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM_2.5). Neurological effects of PM_2.5 have been previously reported, but this relationship has received limited attention in the context of oil spills. We evaluated associations between burning-related PM_2.5 and prevalence of self-reported neurological symptoms during, and 1-3 years after, the DWH disaster cleanup. For 9914 DWH disaster responders in the Gulf Long-term Follow-up Study who worked on the water, we examined aggregate outcomes (central nervous system [CNS; dizziness, sweating, palpitations, nausea, or migraine/severe headache] and peripheral nervous system [PNS; tingling/numbness in extremities, blurred vision, or stumbling] symptoms) and individual symptoms (CNS and PNS symptoms, plus insomnia, vomiting, seizures, and fatigue). We estimated PM_2.5 concentrations via Gaussian plume dispersion models and linked these to detailed DWH cleanup work histories. We used log-binomial regression to estimate adjusted prevalence ratios (PR) and 95% confidence intervals, accounting for age, race, ethnicity, and sex, and DWH disaster-related co-exposures to benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylene, and n-hexane (BTEX-H). We examined effect measure modification by age, race, smoking, and BTEX-H exposure. During the disaster, 34% of participants experienced at least one symptom (23% CNS, 12% PNS); 1-3 years later, 30% did (19% CNS, 17% PNS). Evidence of associations with PM_2.5 was most consistent for CNS symptoms (PR range: 1.17 to 1.51), although we did not observe exposure-response trends. For PNS, PR ranged from 0.96 to 1.84. Associations with PM were more apparent among those with lower BTEX-H exposure and among older workers. We found some evidence of an association between burning-related PM_2.5 and prevalence of neurologic symptoms during the DWH disaster response and 1-3 years later. Understanding these relationships can inform responses to future disasters to better protect human health.