TY - JOUR
T1 - Pesticides in urban multiunit dwellings
T2 - Hazard identification using classification and regression tree (CART) analysis
AU - Julien, Rhona
AU - Levy, Jonathan I.
AU - Adamkiewicz, Gary
AU - Hauser, Russ
AU - Spengler, John D.
AU - Canales, Robert A.
AU - Hynes, H. Patricia
N1 - Funding Information:
Funding was provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (Grant No. MALHH0077-00), the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, the Boston Foundation, and the Jessie B. Cox Charitable Trust. Additional financial support for Rhona Julien included the Melvin W. First Scholarship and the Akira Yamaguchi Endowment. The authors give special thanks to the families who participated in the study as well as the community partners for their cooperation and commitment to the success of this project. Special recognition is given to Margaret Reid, Director of the Asthma Program at the Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC). BPHC is the lead agency for the Boston Healthy Pest Free Housing Initiative under the leadership of Ms. Reid, who is responsible for spearheading the “Bodega Education Program” and the “Pesticide Buy-Back Program.”
PY - 2008/10
Y1 - 2008/10
N2 - Many units in public housing or other low-income urban dwellings may have elevated pesticide residues, given recurring infestation, but it would be logistically and economically infeasible to sample a large number of units to identify highly exposed households to design interventions. Within this study, our aim was to devise a low-cost approach to identify homes in public housing with high levels of pesticide residues, using information that would allow the housing authority and residents to determine optimal strategies to reduce household exposures. As part of the Healthy Public Housing Initiative, we collected environmental samples from 42 public housing apartments in Boston, MA, in 2002 and 2003 and gathered housing characteristics; for example, household demographics and self-reported pesticide use information, considering information available with and without a home visit. Focusing on five organophosphate and pyrethroid pesticides, we used classification and regression tree analysis (CART) to disaggregate the pesticide concentration data into homogenous subsamples according to housing characteristics, which allowed us to identify households and associated networks impacted by the mismanagement of pesticides. The CART analysis demonstrated reasonable sensitivity and specificity given more extensive household information but generally poor performance using only information available without a home visit. Apartments with high concentrations of cyfluthrin, a pyrethroid of interest given that it is a restricted use pesticide, were more likely to be associated with Hispanic residents who resided in their current apartment for more than 5 yr, consistent with documented pesticide usage patterns. We conclude that using CART as an exploratory technique to better understand the home characteristics associated with elevated pesticide levels may be a viable approach for risk management in large multiunit housing developments.
AB - Many units in public housing or other low-income urban dwellings may have elevated pesticide residues, given recurring infestation, but it would be logistically and economically infeasible to sample a large number of units to identify highly exposed households to design interventions. Within this study, our aim was to devise a low-cost approach to identify homes in public housing with high levels of pesticide residues, using information that would allow the housing authority and residents to determine optimal strategies to reduce household exposures. As part of the Healthy Public Housing Initiative, we collected environmental samples from 42 public housing apartments in Boston, MA, in 2002 and 2003 and gathered housing characteristics; for example, household demographics and self-reported pesticide use information, considering information available with and without a home visit. Focusing on five organophosphate and pyrethroid pesticides, we used classification and regression tree analysis (CART) to disaggregate the pesticide concentration data into homogenous subsamples according to housing characteristics, which allowed us to identify households and associated networks impacted by the mismanagement of pesticides. The CART analysis demonstrated reasonable sensitivity and specificity given more extensive household information but generally poor performance using only information available without a home visit. Apartments with high concentrations of cyfluthrin, a pyrethroid of interest given that it is a restricted use pesticide, were more likely to be associated with Hispanic residents who resided in their current apartment for more than 5 yr, consistent with documented pesticide usage patterns. We conclude that using CART as an exploratory technique to better understand the home characteristics associated with elevated pesticide levels may be a viable approach for risk management in large multiunit housing developments.
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U2 - 10.3155/1047-3289.58.10.1297
DO - 10.3155/1047-3289.58.10.1297
M3 - Article
C2 - 18939776
AN - SCOPUS:55049120549
SN - 1096-2247
VL - 58
SP - 1297
EP - 1302
JO - Journal of the Air and Waste Management Association
JF - Journal of the Air and Waste Management Association
IS - 10
ER -