Abstract
BackgroundIn 1992, a cargo aircraft crashed into apartment buildings in Amsterdam, killing 43 victims and destroying 266 apartments. In the aftermath there were speculations about the cause of the crash, potential exposures to hazardous materials due to the disaster and the health consequences. Starting in 2000, the Epidemiological Study Air Disaster in Amsterdam (ESADA) aimed to assess the long-term health effects of occupational exposure to this disaster on professional assistance workers.Methods/DesignEpidemiological study among all the exposed professional fire-fighters and police officers who performed disaster-related task(s), and hangar workers who sorted the wreckage of the aircraft, as well as reference groups of their non-exposed colleagues who did not perform any disaster-related tasks. The study took place, on average, 8.5 years after the disaster. Questionnaires were used to assess details on occupational exposure to the disaster. Health measures comprised laboratory assessments in urine, blood and saliva, as well as self-reported current health measures, including health-related quality of life, and various physical and psychological symptoms.DiscussionIn this paper we describe and discuss the design of the ESADA. The ESADA will provide additional scientific knowledge on the long-term health effects of technological disasters on professional workers.
Highlights
In 1992, a cargo aircraft crashed into apartment buildings in Amsterdam, killing 43 victims and destroying 266 apartments
In this paper we report on the design of the epidemiological study among professional assistance workers: the Epidemiological Study Air Disaster in Amsterdam (ESADA)
Due to the fact that the ESADA originated partly from societal concerns, we considered it necessary to include some additional outcomes that will answer questions for some of the affected people, which, in turn, might help to reassure them
Summary
In the early evening of October 4th, 1992, an El Al Boeing off from Schiphol Airport and crashed into two apartment (page number not for citation purposes). The aim of this study is to assess the longterm psychological and physical health effects of occupational exposure to the air disaster in Amsterdam on professional assistance workers, i.e. fire-fighters, police officers and hangar workers. They have to face a number of methodological problems These difficulties include: (a) defining the entire potentially 'affected' population and appropriate reference groups; (b) contacting potential participants, in the case of evacuation and hospitalization; low response rates; usually without data on non-respondents [65]; (c) collecting exposure data immediately after the event, which is needed for long-term epidemiological studies. The ESADA will provide additional scientific knowledge on the long-term health effects of technological disasters on professional workers
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