Background: We followed up, in 2013, the subjects who lived near the Athens International Airport and had participated in the cross-sectional multi-country HYENA study in 2004-06. Objectives:The objective was to evaluate the association of exposure to aircraft and road traffic noise with the incidence of hypertension and other cardiovascular outcomes. Methods:From the 780 individuals who participated in the cross-sectional study, 537were still living in the same area and 420 accepted to participate in the follow-up.Aircraft and road traffic noise exposure was based on the estimations conducted in 2004-06, linking geo-coded residential addresses of the participants to noise levels. We applied multiple logistic regression and Cox proportional hazards models, adjusting for potential confounders. Results:The incidence of hypertension was significantly associated with higher aircraft noise exposure during the night. Specifically, the OR for hypertension per 10 dB increase in Lnight aircraft noise exposure was 2.63 (95% C.I. 1.21-5.71). Doctor diagnosed cardiac arrhythmia was significantly associated with Lnight aircraft noise exposure, when prevalent and incident cases were considered with an OR of 2.09 (95% CI 1.07, 4.08). Stroke risk was also increased with increasing noise exposure but the association was not significant. Twenty four hour road traffic noise associations with the outcomes considered were weaker and less consistent. Conclusions:In conclusion, our cohort study suggests that long-term exposure to aircraft noise, particularly during the night is associated with incident hypertension and possibly, also, cardiovascular effects.

BackgroundShortly after the approval of an over-the-counter HIV self-test in the US, we conducted a study to estimate the proportion of men who have sex with men (MSM) in Spain who knew that unauthorized HIV self-tests could be purchased online, and the proportion that had already used these tests, as well as their socio-demographic and behavioural correlates.MethodsBetween September 2012 and February 2013, MSM users of gay dating websites were invited to complete an online questionnaire. We calculated estimates of the knowledge and use of unauthorized HIV self-testing and assessed the associated factors by rare event logit regression models.ResultsAmong 8620 participants, 4.2 % (95 % CI:3.8–4.6) knew they could buy an unauthorized HIV self-test kit online, and 12.7 % (95 % CI:12.0–13.4) thought that such a test might exist, although they had never seen one. Only 0.7 % (95 % CI:0.5–0.9) had ever self-tested. In the multivariable analysis, knowledge of online availability of self-tests was associated with being a non-Latin American foreigner, having at least two previous HIV tests, intending to test for HIV in the next year, and knowing about U.S. approval of self-testing. Ever-use of HIV self-testing was associated with being over 34 years of age, living outside Spain during the last 12 months, and knowing about U.S. approval of self-testing.ConclusionsBoth knowledge and use of unauthorized HIV self-testing among MSM in Spain was very low among HIV negative or untested MSM in Spain. The recent approval in the United Kingdom and France might increase the number of MSM seeking such testing and possibly using unauthorized test kits not meeting quality standards.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12889-016-3204-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Background We assessed the capacity of HIV self-testing to promote testing among untested men who have sex with men (MSM) and determined the most benefited subpopulations. Methods An online questionnaire was disseminated on several gay websites in Spain from September 2012 to April 2013. We used Poisson regression to estimate factors associated with the intention to use self-testing if already available. Among those who reported intention of use, we assessed several aspects related to the testing and linkage to care process by type of barrier reported: low perceived risk (LR), structural barriers (SB) and fear of testing positive (FTP). Results Of 2589 never-tested MSM, 83% would have used self-testing if already available. Intention of use was associated with age ≥30 (adj.PR, 95%CI: 1.05, 1.01–1.10), having had protected (adj.PR, 95%CI: 1.15, 1.02–1.30) or unprotected (adj.PR, 95%CI: 1.21, 1.07–1.37) anal intercourse and reporting FTP (adj.PR, 95%CI: 1.12, 1.05–1.20) or SB to access HIV testing (adj.PR, 95%CI: 1.23, 1.19–1.28). Among those who reported intention of using a self-testi, 78.3% declared it their preferred option (83.8% in the SB group; p<0.001), and 56.8% would always use this testing option (60.9% among the SB group; p = 0.001). In the case of obtaining a positive self-test, 69.3% would seek confirmatory testing, 15.3% would self-test again before taking any decision and 13.0% reported not being sure of what they would do. Conclusion HIV self-testing in Spain has the potential of becoming a highly used testing methodology for untested MSM and could represent the gateway to testing especially among older, at risk MSM who report SB or FTP as main barriers to testing.