Heartaches over housing: correlating cardiovascular disease rates and housing damage in the aftermath of the Canterbury earthquakes

摘要

In The Lancet Planetary Health, Andrea Teng and colleagues1 investigate the effect of chronic psychological stress related to level of housing damage on cardiovascular outcomes in residents aged 45 years or older following the 2010–11 Christchurch, New Zealand earthquakes. Most international research in this area focuses on cardiovascular events immediately after an earthquake, usually with up to 6 months of follow-up. This is the first longitudinal investigation (with 5 years of follow-up) of cardiovascular health outcomes after a natural hazard event. Research findings have established that the negative effects of earthquake-related stresses on cardiovascular outcomes continue for 12 months after the earthquakes. The study by Teng and colleagues uses a new cardiovascular stressor: level of property damage in area of residence, with damage defined as the ratio between the total value of building damage claims at an occupied dwelling and the property's value. The association between increased cardiovascular disease and level of property damage in an individual's area of residence has been developed by linking Canterbury District Health Board hospital admissions and mortality data with insurance-assessed damage on Christchurch housing stock. Population-wide information has been generated that could inform the development of early interventions to address post-earthquake stresses and enhance cardiac services.