New London-based research shows a link between air pollution and increased risk of epilepsy, a brain condition that causes seizures. “What we do is we identify where these people with epilepsy live and what was the exposure to those pollutants in those specific areas where they live,” explained Dr. Jorge Burneo, Scientist at LHSCRI, Neurologist at London Health Science Centre (LHSC) and Professor at Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry. Researchers at London Health Sciences Centre Research Institute (LHSCRI) and Western University’s Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry found an association between long-term exposure to air pollution with new cases of epilepsy in adults in Ontario. The study was conducted based on research data from the province that was collected between 2010- 2016. “There’s been considerable research coming out over the past decade, especially, showing that, air pollution has been associated with other neurological disorders such as, stroke and Alzheimer’s disease. But there wasn’t a lot of, research that has looked at the association, with epilepsy,” says Tresah Antaya, PhD, Postdoctoral Associate at Western University in the Department of Clinical Neurological Sciences. After focusing on adults without other major health conditions like brain cancer, researchers found over 24,000 new epilepsy cases over six years. “There are three markers ozone, NO2 and, particle matter, and we found that there is, that some of those pollutants increases your chances to develop epilepsy,” says Burneo. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 99 per cent of the world’s population breathes air that exceeds air quality limits. “Now, with this study, we’re telling the policymakers that exposure to pollutants or living in areas where those pollutants are much more frequent, there is a chance that they may develop epilepsy,” said Burneo. As a next step in this work, the research team plans to explore the effects that forest fires may have on health, including epilepsy.
