First responders who sprang into action after the 9/11 attacks have had no shortage of hardships in the years since: They’ve had to deal with a huge increase in heart attacks, strokes, cancer, post-traumatic stress disorder and other health problems. mental.
Now, doctors are adding another devastating disease to that list: dementia.
In a new study, academics found that police officers, rescuers, survivors and other first responders were nearly 40 times more likely to develop the memory-robbing disease before age 65 than the average American.
Researchers warned that the small toxic dust inhaled that day may have entered his bloodstream and caused inflammation that can lead to poor blood flow to the brain, causing dementia-like symptoms.
A paramedic and a police officer breathe oxygen after the collapse of the South Tower of the World Trade Center
Dozens of first responders continue to succumb to cancers and respiratory illnesses related to their heroism on 9/11. Now doctors suggest they, too, could be at risk of dementia.
The study, which was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association Network Openanalyzed 5,000 9/11 first responders under age 65 with no preexisting signs of dementia.
The researchers included anyone who spent at least 80 hours in or around lower Manhattan between September 2001 and July 2002, except firefighters, who are monitored by a different research group.
During the five years the group was studied, 228 people were diagnosed with dementia, about five percent of the study group.
In comparison, less than one percent of the general population is diagnosed with dementia before age 65.
That means 9/11 first responders were about 38 times more likely to develop dementia before age 65 than the average American.
This was a larger gap than expected, said Dr. Sean Clouston, an epidemiologist at Stony Brook University who led the study. he told STAT.
“We would have expected one or two, maybe three cases at most, so to see several hundred was a surprise,” Dr. Clouston said.
The study also found that people who were exposed to more particles for longer were even more likely to develop dementia than people who constantly wore protective equipment.
The particles are liquid droplets about 40 times smaller than the width of a human hair suspended in the air that are likely to be inhaled or ingested by humans.
It is freed from a building collapse, a forest fire and even a car exhaust.
Of the 89 respondents studied who had high particulate exposure, 12 developed dementia. Of the 342 respondents with low exposure to a particular subject, 3 developed dementia.
Because the researchers had to rely on participants’ memories of these events, it is difficult to prove how many particles they were actually exposed to, the authors cautioned.
Regardless, the researchers wrote that their findings suggest that “reliable use of PPE could help prevent the onset of dementia before age 65 among people exposed to uncontrolled building collapse.”
This is not the first study to link particulate matter exposure to dementia.
Air pollutants were associated with problems developing memory and thinking in a 2022 review of 70 studies by the Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants in the United Kingdom.
Experts don’t yet know how particles might contribute to dementia risk.
It could be that these particles are so tiny that, when people inhale them, they can travel through the incredibly small openings in the membrane that protects the brain. Once inside, the chemicals could damage brain cells through inflammation.
It could also be that these particles block blood flow, which could gradually deprive the brain of blood and oxygen, leading to dementia, according to the study. Alzheimer’s Society.
The new investigation included civilian first responders and people who worked near ground zero in the year after the attacks.
This has also been linked to a number of other health problems affecting this group of people.
According to the CDC, lung damage caused by working at ground zero leads many to develop asthma and sleep apnea. Many have also developed cancer, particularly of the thyroid, prostate, skin and blood.
Additionally, many first responders have had to deal with same-day injuries, whether it be back pain, burns, or broken bones.
All of these conditions have led to increasing numbers of deaths in the years since the attacks.
In 2023, a tragic record was broken when the number of first responders who died from 9/11-related illnesses equaled the number of firefighters lost in the initial attack.
This study emphasizes the importance of preparing first responders in disaster areas with the proper equipment, Roberto Lucchini, a professor of environmental and occupational health sciences at Florida International University, who was not involved in the study, told STAT.
Preparing first responders to use the proper equipment could be key to preventing them from developing debilitating illnesses in the future.
This applies to much more than just terrorist attacks, he said: We have situations of exposure to these types of toxic substances and all these dangers in a variety of situations, including natural disasters… or destruction of buildings: collapses, demolitions or earthquakes. ‘
