New York City Metropolitan Area Research Articles

Beyond traffic jam alleviation: evaluating the health and health equity impacts of New York City’s congestion pricing plan

New York City (NYC) is slated to be the first jurisdiction in the USA to implement a cordon-based congestion tax, which will be levied on vehicles entering its Central Business...

Identifying Frequently Endorsed Benefits and Barriers to Breast Cancer Screening for African-Born Women in the NYC Metropolitan Area: a Pilot Study.

Most cancer screening data report on Black participants without distinguishing nativity, limiting our understanding of the needs of distinct groups within the African diaspora. The purpose of this pilot study was to assess demographic characteristics and perceptions of the benefits of and barriers to mammography among African immigrant women in New York City (NYC). Forty-two women who were 40years or older, born in Africa, and English and/or French-speaking were recruited from African immigrant communities in NYC to complete a survey. Eighty percent of our sample aged 50 to 73 was adherent to the 2016 USPSTF mammography screening guideline. The most frequently endorsed benefits were that mammography will help find breast cancer early, could help find a breast lump before it is big enough to feel, and that if found early, breast cancer could be successfully treated. The most endorsed barriers were that having a mammogram is painful and that lack of insurance or being treated rudely at the mammogram center would keep participants from having a mammogram. Chi-square analyses assessed relationships between demographic characteristics and perceptions about mammography and revealed that endorsement of barriers to screening (e.g., health issues, transportation problems, pain, and time associated with mammography) varied by educational attainment. Findings suggest that future interventions should be multi-level and (1) support patients in accessing screening via resource sharing, (2) address other commonly cited barriers such as fear of pain during the procedure, and (3) support anti-racist healthcare environments especially in terms of treatment by providers.

Localized uplift, widespread subsidence, and implications for sea level rise in the NewYork City metropolitan area.

Regional relative sea level rise is exacerbating flooding hazards in the coastal zone. In addition to changes in the ocean, vertical land motion (VLM) is a driver of spatial variation in sea level change that can either diminish or enhance flood risk. Here, we apply state-of-the-art interferometric synthetic aperture radar and global navigation satellite system time series analysis to estimate velocities and corresponding uncertainties at 30-m resolution in the NewYork City metropolitan area, revealing VLM with unprecedented detail. We find broad subsidence of 1.6 mm/year, consistent with glacial isostatic adjustment to the melting of the former ice sheets, and previously undocumented hot spots of both subsidence and uplift that can be physically explained in some locations. Our results inform ongoing efforts to adapt to sea level rise and reveal points of VLM that motivate both future scientific investigations into surface geology and assessments of engineering projects.

Persistence of anxiety among Asian Americans: racial and ethnic heterogeneity in the longitudinal trends in mental well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic.

To examine within-individual time trends in mental well-being and factors influencing heterogeneity of these trends. Longitudinal telephone survey of adults over 3 waves from the New York City (NYC) Metropolitan area during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Participants reported depression using the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ)-8, anxiety using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)-7, and past 30-day increases in tobacco or alcohol use at each wave. Adjusted mixed effects logistic regression models assessed time trends in mental well-being. There were 1227 respondents. Over 3 study waves, there were statistically significant decreasing time trends in the odds of each outcome (adjusted OR (95% CI) 0.47 (0.37, 0.60); p < 0.001 for depression; aOR (95% CI) 0.55 (0.45, 0.66); p < 0.001 for anxiety; aOR (95% CI) 0.50 (0.35, 0.71); p < 0.001 for past 30-day increased tobacco use; aOR (95% CI) 0.31 (0.24, 0.40); p < 0.001 for past 30-day increased alcohol use). Time trends for anxiety varied by race and ethnicity (p value for interaction = 0.05, 4 df); anxiety declined over time among white, Black, Hispanic, and Other race and ethnicity but not among Asian participants. In a demographically varied population from the NYC Metropolitan area, depression, anxiety and increased substance use were common during the first months of the pandemic, but decreased over the following year. While this was consistently the case across most demographic groups, the odds of anxiety among Asian participants did not decrease over time.

Information About COVID-19 Testing on College Websites in the New York City Metropolitan Area

The continuing COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted the Fall reopening plans among institutions of higher education (IHEs) in the United States (U.S.). While recommendations were made to conduct COVID-19 testing of students and staff, it is unclear as to what extent IHEs were able to engage in testing. IHEs also play a critical role in provision of accurate information related to COVID-19 to students and staff. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to assess available information on COVID-19 testing on IHEs’ websites in the New York City (NYC) metropolitan area. IHEs’ websites were screened for the presence of content related to COVID-19 testing. Larger institutions (> 10,000 students) were more likely than smaller institutions (≤ 5000 students) to provide information on how to make an appointment for COVID-19 testing (χ2(2) = 8.1, P < 0.05), and information on free testing (χ2(2) = 7.0, P < 0.05). Of 150 IHEs included, 124 (82.7%) IHE’s reported testing data to the campus community, with the majority providing this data biweekly (62.9%). A total of 116 IHEs recorded at least one positive COVID-19 case among their students or staff during the Fall semester. Smaller-sized institutions reported a significantly lower number of cases than medium- (P < 0.001) and large-sized (P = 0.003) institutions. Additional differences related to testing modalities and provision of information were observed according to schools’ state jurisdictions. Although geographically close, IHEs in the NYC metropolitan area did not provide information on COVID-19 testing in a uniform and comprehensive fashion, which may further contribute to public confusion.

Prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies Among Healthcare Workers in a Disease Epicenter

The New York City metropolitan area emerged as an epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic. A recent population study showed a prevalence of SARS-CoV-2

Interaction of Urban Heat Island Effects and Land–Sea Breezes during a New York City Heat Event

AbstractThe state of knowledge of the effects of urban heat islands is advanced through investigation of a heat event in the highly complex coastal environment of New York City (NYC) by using the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model and surface observations in the NYC metropolitan area to evaluate heat retention at high- and low-temperature times during 18–20 July 2013. Urban surface air temperatures are 1°–2°C higher than rural temperatures throughout the daytime and increase to 3°–5°C higher during the night. Lack of a land–sea temperature gradient prevents development of a land breeze during the night. A land–sea temperature difference approaching 20°C leads to sea-breeze effects during 18 July that reduce daytime skin temperatures, but higher winds greatly reduce the sea breeze during 19 July. WRF Model data are generated using three urban parameterization schemes. The most sophisticated multilayer urban parameterization proves to be most accurate when compared with surface observation data. Errors between WRF Model data and surface observations are attributed to assigned coastal sea surface temperatures, excessive building drag, and too little urban heat retention. Adjustments to the input parameters to the multilayer scheme improved accuracy to lead to the control simulation used for urban heat island effects and land–sea-breeze analysis. NYC building interaction with the synoptic flow generates urban drag and wake effects, although relatively high winds limit their extent. Urban flow results and identified model errors support the development and deployment of the best urban parameterization scheme.

Using agent-based modeling to evaluate the effects of Hurricane Sandy’s recovery timeline on the ability to work

Hurricane Sandy greatly disrupted the New York City (NYC) region’s transportation systems, electric power systems, work locations, and schools in 2012. This study uses survey responses from NYC Metropolitan Area residents to develop an agent-based model that depicts commuter travel behavior and adaptation after the disruption. Six scenarios were tested to quantify which systems were more critical to recover for an earlier return to productivity - defined as the ability to work for one’s employer. The recommended system restoration order depends on the pattern of normal commuting behavior. In the NYC Metropolitan Area, a larger share of commuters use transit to commute than in any other US metropolitan area. This resulted in the model indicating the subway/rail system recovery as the most important factor for returning the most people to productivity. The second most important factor is widespread power restoration itself, which allows residents to telework while waiting for the transportation system to recover. The next most important factor is the reopening of schools and daycares (with associated infrastructure systems), freeing parents to commute. The remaining expedited system recovery scenarios tested using the agent-based model resulted in a faster return to productivity than the baseline, but to a lesser degree than the subway/rail, power, and childcare systems scenarios. Additional analysis of recovery shows that households with higher annual income benefit more from power recovery compared to those with lower incomes. Moreover, the effectiveness of recovery scenarios can differ based on residential location and the extent of disruption in that location.

Awareness, Risk Perception, and Protective Behaviors for Extreme Heat and Climate Change in New York City

Preventing heat-related illness and death requires understanding who is at risk and why, and options for intervention. We sought to understand the drivers of socioeconomic disparities in heat-related vulnerability in New York City (NYC), the perceived risk of heat exposure and climate change, and barriers to protective behaviors. A random digit dial telephone survey of 801 NYC adults aged 18 and older was conducted from September 22-October 1, 2015. Thirteen percent of the population did not possess an air conditioner (AC), and another 15% used AC never/infrequently. Odds of not possessing AC were greater for non-Hispanic blacks compared with other races/ethnicities, OR&amp;#61;2.0 (95% CI: 1.1, 3.5), and for those with low annual household income, OR&amp;#61;3.1 (95% CI: 1.8, 5.5). Only 12% reported going to a public place with AC if they could not keep cool at home. While low-income individuals were less likely to be aware of heat warnings, they were more likely to be concerned that heat could make them ill and that climate change would affect their health than participants with a higher household income, OR&amp;#61;1.6 (95% CI: 1.0, 2.3). In NYC, lack of access to AC partially explains disparities in heat-related health outcomes. Our results point to opportunities for knowledge building and engagement on heat-health awareness and climate change adaptation that can be applied in NYC and other metropolitan areas to improve and target public health prevention efforts.

Awareness, Risk Perception, and Protective Behaviors for Extreme Heat and Climate Change in New York City.

Preventing heat-related illness and death requires an understanding of who is at risk and why, and options for intervention. We sought to understand the drivers of socioeconomic disparities in heat-related vulnerability in New York City (NYC), the perceived risk of heat exposure and climate change, and barriers to protective behaviors. A random digit dial telephone survey of 801 NYC adults aged 18 and older was conducted from 22 September–1 October, 2015. Thirteen percent of the population did not possess an air conditioner (AC), and another 15% used AC never/infrequently. In adjusted models, odds of not possessing AC were greater for non-Hispanic blacks compared with other races/ethnicities, odds ratio (OR) = 2.0 (95% CI: 1.1, 3.5), and for those with low annual household income, OR = 3.1 (95% CI: 1.8, 5.5). Only 12% reported going to a public place with AC if they could not keep cool at home. While low-income individuals were less likely to be aware of heat warnings, they were more likely to be concerned that heat could make them ill and that climate change would affect their health than participants with a higher household income, OR = 1.6 (95% CI: 1.0, 2.3). In NYC, lack of access to AC partially explains disparities in heat-related health outcomes. Our results point to opportunities for knowledge building and engagement on heat-health awareness and climate change adaptation that can be applied in NYC and other metropolitan areas to improve and target public health prevention efforts.

C-index and Subindices of the h-index: New Variants of the h-index to Account for Variations in Author Contribution.

ObjectivesBibliometrics are used to assess or compare the academic productivity of individuals or groups. Most of these metrics, including the widely used h-index, do not recognize the added contribution that is generally provided by authors listed first, second, second-to-last and last (enhanced positions) in a publication citation. We propose the c-index as a novel modification to the h-index that will better reflect an individual’s academic output, incorporating authorship position.MethodsOne hundred and sixty-six academic neurosurgeons in eight New York City (NYC) metropolitan region training programs were identified through department websites. Using the Scopus citation database, bibliometric profiles were created for each surgeon. Once an individual’s h-index was calculated, the h-core articles (those with h or more citations) were specifically assessed to determine citation author position. Novel bibliometric indices were created to reflect the number of h-core articles that accounted for primary (hp), senior (hs) or internal authorship (hi) position. Weighted “involvement factors” for primary (ip) and senior (is) author contribution were created to reflect the added value of “enhanced position” authorship in an individual’s h-core publications. c-indices were created to reflect the author’s h-index once augmented by primary (cp), senior (cs), and overall (co) “enhanced position” authorship. Comparisons were made within each institution and across institutions, according to academic rank (assistant professor, associate professor, professor and chairperson).ResultsBreakdown by academic rank showed an increasing average h-index progressing from assistant professor through professor rank with no significant difference demonstrated between professor and chair status. This pattern was seen across all departments (aggregate) but with fewer instances of significance at the level of individual departments. After h-index modification, cp, cs, and co indices showed a similarly significant trend. As faculty rank increased, there was a significant trend toward increasing numbers of articles with authors in enhanced positions and a higher percentage of articles with the author in a senior position. Academic faculty had higher h, cp, and cs indices than clinical faculty. Evaluation of each individual department revealed no significant trend regarding a department’s higher average cp or cs. Average c-index for a department paralleled the average h-index of that department, with larger departments tending to have larger cumulative h, cp, cs, and co indices. No consistent correlation was seen between mean h-indices and academic rank at an individual departmental level.ConclusionsThis study examines the academic productivity of a subset of neurosurgical programs in the NYC metropolitan area as a test bed for novel bibliometric indices. hp, hi, and hs represent the respective number of primary, internal and senior authorship papers that comprise an individual’s h-core papers. cp, cs, and co, variations of the h-index metric, are designed to more accurately reflect the contributions by primary, secondary and senior authors. Increasing academic rank was associated with an increased number of articles with the author in enhanced positions and a higher percentage of articles in a senior position.

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder after Hurricane Sandy among Persons Exposed to the 9/11 Disaster.

Traumatic exposure during a hurricane is associated with adverse mental health conditions post-event. The World Trade Center Health Registry provided a sampling pool for a rapid survey of persons directly affected by Hurricane Sandy in the New York City (NYC) metropolitan area in late October 2012. This study evaluated the relationship between Sandy experiences and Sandy-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among individuals previously exposed to the September 11, 2001 (9/11) disaster. A total of 4,558 surveys were completed from April 10-November 7, 2013. After exclusions for missing data, the final sample included 2,214 (53.5%) respondents from FEMA-defined inundation zones and 1,923 (46.5%) from non-inundation zones. Sandy exposures included witnessing terrible events, Sandy-related injury, fearing for own life or safety of others, evacuation, living in a home that was flooded or damaged, property loss, and financial loss. Sandy-related PTSD was defined as a score of ≥44 on a Sandy-specific PTSD Checklist. PTSD prevalence was higher in the inundation zones (11.3%) and lower in the non-inundation zones (4.4%). The highest prevalence of Sandy-related PTSD was among individuals in the inundation zone who sustained an injury (31.2%), reported a history of 9/11-related PTSD (28.8%), or had low social support prior to the event (28.6%). In the inundation zones, significantly elevated adjusted odds of Sandy-related PTSD were observed among persons with a prior history of 9/11-related PTSD, low social support, and those who experienced a greater number of Sandy traumatic events. Sandy-related stress symptoms indicative of PTSD affected a significant proportion of persons who lived in flooded areas of the NYC metropolitan area. Prior 9/11-related PTSD increased the likelihood of Sandy-related PTSD, while social support was protective. Public health preparation for events similar to Sandy should incorporate outreach and linkages to care for persons with prior disaster-related trauma.

Alcohol use trajectories among adults in an urban area after a disaster: evidence from a population‐based cohort study

Alcohol use increased in the New York City (NYC) metropolitan area in the first months after the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks. To investigate alcohol use trajectories in the NYC metropolitan area in the 3 years after 11 September and examine the relative contributions of acute exposure to the attacks and ongoing stressors to these trajectories. We used a population-based cohort of adults recruited through a random-digit-dial telephone survey in 2002; participants completed three follow-up interviews over 30 months. The NYC metropolitan area. A total of 2752 non-institutionalized adult residents of NYC. We used growth mixture models to assess trajectories in levels of total alcohol consumption and bingeing in the past 30 days, and predictors of these trajectories. We identified five trajectories of alcohol consumption levels and three bingeing trajectories. Predictors of higher levels of use over time included ongoing stressors, traumatic events and lower income. Ongoing exposure to stressors and low income also play a central role in bingeing trajectories. While point-in-time mass traumatic events may matter in the short term, their contribution subsides over time. Accumulated stressors and traumatic events, in contrast, lead to higher levels of consumption among respondents already vulnerable to high alcohol use. Interventions to mitigate post-disaster stressors may have substantial benefit in reducing alcohol abuse in the medium- to long term.

Urban Canopy Modeling of the New York City Metropolitan Area: A Comparison and Validation of Single- and Multilayer Parameterizations

Abstract High-resolution numerical simulations are conducted using the Coupled Ocean–Atmosphere Mesoscale Prediction System (COAMPS)1 with two different urban canopy parameterizations for a 23-day period in August 2005 for the New York City (NYC) metropolitan area. The control COAMPS simulations use the single-layer Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Urban Canopy Model (W-UCM) and sensitivity simulations use a multilayer urban parameterization based on Brown and Williams (BW-UCM). Both simulations use surface forcing from the WRF land surface model, Noah, and hourly sea surface temperature fields from the New York Harbor and Ocean Prediction System model hindcast. Mean statistics are computed for the 23-day period from 5 to 27 August (540-hourly observations) at five Meteorological Aviation Report stations for a nested 0.444-km horizontal resolution grid centered over the NYC metropolitan area. Both simulations show a cold mean urban canopy air temperature bias primarily due to an underestimation of nighttime temperatures. The mean bias is significantly reduced using the W-UCM (−0.10°C for W-UCM versus −0.82°C for BW-UCM) due to the development of a stronger nocturnal urban heat island (UHI; mean value of 2.2°C for the W-UCM versus 1.9°C for the BW-UCM). Results from a 24-h case study (12 August 2005) indicate that the W-UCM parameterization better maintains the UHI through increased nocturnal warming due to wall and road effects. The ground heat flux for the W-UCM is much larger during the daytime than for the BW-UCM (peak ∼300 versus 100 W m−2), effectively shifting the period of positive sensible flux later into the early evening. This helps to maintain the near-surface mixed layer at night in the W-UCM simulation and sustains the nocturnal UHI. In contrast, the BW-UCM simulation develops a strong nocturnal stable surface layer extending to approximately 50–75-m depth. Subsequently, the nocturnal BW-UCM wind speeds are a factor of 3–4 less than W-UCM with reduced nighttime turbulent kinetic energy (average &amp;lt; 0.1 m2 s−2). For the densely urbanized area of Manhattan, BW-UCM winds show more dependence on urbanization than W-UCM. The decrease in urban wind speed is most prominent for BW-UCM both in the day- and nighttime over lower Manhattan, with the daytime decrease generally over the region of tallest building heights while the nighttime decrease is influenced by both building height as well as urban fraction. In contrast, the W-UCM winds show less horizontal variation over Manhattan, particularly during the daytime. These results stress the importance of properly characterizing the urban morphology in urban parameterizations at high resolutions to improve the model’s predictive capability.

Estimating the effects of increased urbanization on surface meteorology and ozone concentrations in the New York City metropolitan region

Land use and pollutant emission changes can have significant impacts on air quality, regional climate, and human health. Here we describe a modeling study aimed at quantifying the potential effects of extensive changes in urban land cover in the New York City (NYC), USA metropolitan region on surface meteorology and ozone (O 3) concentrations. The SLEUTH land-use change model was used to extrapolate urban land cover over this region from “present-day” (ca. 1990) conditions to a future year (ca. 2050), and these projections were subsequently integrated into meteorological and air quality simulations. The development of the future-year land-use scenario followed the narrative of the “A2” scenario described by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), but was restricted to the greater NYC area. The modeling system consists of the Penn State/NCAR MM5 mesoscale meteorological model; the Sparse Matrix Operator Kernal Emissions processing system; and the US EPA Community Multiscale Air Quality model, and simulations were performed for two 18-day episodes, one near-past and one future. Our results suggest that extensive urban growth in the NYC metropolitan area has the potential to increase afternoon near-surface temperatures by more than 0.6 °C and planetary boundary layer (PBL) heights by more than 150 m, as well as decrease water vapor mixing ratio by more than 0.6 g kg −1, across the NYC metropolitan area, with the areal extent of all of these changes generally coinciding with the area of increased urbanization. On the other hand, the impacts of these land use changes on ozone concentrations are more complex. Simulation results indicate that future changes in urbanization, with emissions held constant, may lead to increases in episode-average O 3 levels by about 1–5 ppb, and episode-maximum 8 h O 3 levels by more than 6 ppb across much of the NYC area. However, spatial patterns of ozone changes are heterogeneous and also indicate the presence of areas with decreasing ozone concentrations. When anthropogenic emissions were increased to be consistent with the extensive urbanization in the greater NYC area, the O 3 levels increased in outer counties of the metropolitan region but decreased in others, including coastal Connecticut and the Long Island Sound area.

Risk Factors for Depression After a Disaster

Environmental stressors such as mass disasters may contribute to an increased prevalence of depression within the population affected. We examined the prevalence of probable major depression and risk factors for depression in the 6-month period after the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center among New York City (NYC) metropolitan residents. A total of 2700 persons who were representative of the NYC metropolitan area were included in this cross-sectional telephone survey. The prevalence of probable major depression in the 6 months after the attacks was 9.4%. Multivariate logistic regression covariates associated with the likelihood of probable major depression included being directly affected by the attacks, having a perievent panic attack, experiencing multiple life stressors, and having been exposed to previous traumatic events. Mass traumatic event exposure appears to be an independent environmental risk factor for depression in the postdisaster context; specific reactions such as perievent panic attacks may have prognostic value.

Relationship of self-reported asthma severity and urgent health care utilization to psychological sequelae of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center among New York City area residents.

Posttraumatic psychological stress may be associated with increases in somatic illness, including asthma, but the impact of the psychological sequelae of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on physical illness has not been well documented. The authors assessed the relationship between the psychological sequelae of the attacks and asthma symptom severity and the utilization of urgent health care services for asthma since September 11. The authors performed a random digit dial telephone survey of adults in the New York City (NYC) metropolitan area 6 to 9 months after September 11, 2001. Two thousand seven hundred fifty-five demographically representative adults including 364 asthmatics were recruited. The authors assessed self-reported asthma symptom severity, emergency room (ER) visits, and unscheduled physician office visits for asthma since September 11. After adjustment for asthma measures before September 11, demographics, and event exposure in multivariate models posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were a significant predictor of self-reported moderate-to-severe asthma symptoms (OR = 3.4; CI = 1.2-9.4), seeking care for asthma at an ER since September 11 (OR = 6.6; CI = 1.6-28.0), and unscheduled physician visits for asthma since September 11 (OR = 3.6; CI = 1.1-11.5). The number of PTSD symptoms was also significantly related to moderate-to-severe asthma symptoms and unscheduled physician visits since September 11. Neither a panic attack on September 11 nor depression since September 11 was an independent predictor of asthma severity or utilization in multivariate models after September 11. PTSD related to the September 11 terrorist attacks contributed to symptom severity and the utilization of urgent health care services among asthmatics in the NYC metropolitan area.

Mosquito surveillance and polymerase chain reaction detection of West Nile virus, New York State.

West Nile (WN) virus was detected in the metropolitan New York City (NYC) area during the summer and fall of 1999. Sixty-two human cases, 7 fatal, were documented. The New York State Department of Health initiated a departmental effort to implement a statewide mosquito and virus surveillance system. During the 2000 arbovirus surveillance season, we collected 317,676 mosquitoes, submitted 9,952 pools for virus testing, and detected 363 WN virus-positive pools by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Eight species of mosquitoes were found infected. Our mosquito surveillance system complemented other surveillance systems in the state to identify relative risk for human exposure to WN virus. PCR WN virus-positive mosquitoes were detected in NYC and six counties in the lower Hudson River Valley and metropolitan NYC area. Collective surveillance activities suggest that WN virus can disperse throughout the state and may impact local health jurisdictions in the state in future years.

West Nile Virus Returns in 2000

In 1999 West Nile virus (WNV) made its first appearance in the U.S., with a mosquito-borne outbreak in the New York City metropolitan area that