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Subject: Results from Jerrett et al. 2009 studies in EHP & NEJM

From: Michael Jerrett <jerrett@berkeley.edu>

To: Tom Luben/RTP/USEPA/US@EPA

Cc: Rick Burnett <Rick_Burnett@hc-sc.gc.ca>

Date: 08/10/2012 06:51 PM

Subject: Fwd: Results for your 2009 study in NEJM

Dear Tom, 

Here's the correct upper confidence interval from Rick Burnett. 

It was a transpositional error - the all cause mortality limit was double copied. I'll put in an 

erratum on this soon. 

the 1.071 was copied from the row above in the table for all causes

it should be 

1.129 (1.094, 1.165)

-Mike

............................................................................................................................

From: Michael Jerrett <jerrett@Berkeley.edu>

To: Tom Luben/RTP/USEPA/US@EPA

Date: 08/09/2012 12:29 PM

Subject: Re: Results from Jerrett et al. 2009 study in EHP

Dear Tom, 

Here's the PM2.5 table from the Toronto study [EHP]. We estimated this to the interquartile 

range, shown below. Clearly though there is very little variation and the reviewers were probably 

right in asking us to downplay the results. But I would not think you should use these estimates 

of PM; I would instead recommend the HEI report by Krewski and Jerrett - this was a more 

completed assessment of PM2.5 effects; PM2.5 was just a confounder in the ozone analyses. 

Interpolated PM2.5 (μg/m3

) [8.64, 8.71, 8.83]

Table 4: Relative Risk of Mortality in relation to interpolated measures of PM2.5

The models are adjusted for the same confounders as in Table 2.

All 

Nonaccidental 

(N = 295)

Circulatory

 (N = 80)

Respiratory 

(N = 75)

PM2.5 (per 1 μg/m3) 1.20 (0.48 - 3.01) 1.20 (0.20 - 7.42)

 

3.54 (0.59-21)

 I've written to Rick Burnett to get the correct confidence interval for the other [NEJM] study.
Cheers,

Mike

Michael Jerrett, PhD

Professor and Chair

Environmental Health Sciences

School of Public Health

University of California

Berkeley, California 94720-7360

Email: jerrett@berkeley.edu

Website: http://gisheal.berkeley.edu/Index.html

.............................................................................................

From: Tom Luben <Luben.Tom@epamail.epa.gov>

Date: August 8, 2012 11:05:45 AM PDT

To: jerrett@berkeley.edu

Subject: Results for your 2009 study in NEJM

Hi Dr. Jerrett, 

Sorry to bother you again. I am reviewing your 2009 paper, "Long-term Ozone Exposure and Mortality" 

(NEJM 360(11): 1085-1095) for a provisional assessment to support the current NAAQS review for PM. In 

Table 3 of the study, the RR (95% CI) for PM2.5 in a single pollutant model and cardiopulmonary mortality 

is presented as 1.129 (1.094, 1.071). It appears as though the upper confidence limit for this estimate 

may be incorrect (the upper confidence limit is less than the lower confidence limit, and the RR is not 

contained within the given interval). Would you mind sending me the correct RR and confidence interval 

so that I might use it in a figure to characterize the association between long-term exposure to PM2.5 and 

mortality for the NAAQS review?

Thank you, 

Tom

...............................................................................................

From: Tom Luben <Luben.Tom@epamail.epa.gov>

Date: August 8, 2012 10:23:17 AM PDT

To: jerrett@berkeley.edu

Subject: Results for Jerrett et al. 2009 study in EHP

On Aug 8, 2012, at 10:23 AM, Tom Luben wrote:

Hi Dr, Jerrett, 

I am reviewing your 2009 paper, "A Cohort Study of Traffic-related Air Pollution and Mortality in Toronto, 

Ontario, Canada" (EHP 117(5): 772-777) for a provisional assessment to support the current NAAQS 

review of PM. In the study, you mention that you found "no significant associations with mortality in any of 

the models (data not shown)" for PM2.5 and O3. I was wondering if you would be willing to share those 

results (RR and 95% CI) with me so that I could use them in a figure to summarize the evidence for 

long-term exposure to PM2.5 and associations with mortality. 

Thank you, 
Tom

Tom Luben, Ph.D., MSPH

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 

National Center for Environmental Assessment 

Telephone: 919-541-5762

E-mail: luben.tom@epa.gov