Laboratoire de Psychologie des Cognitions, Université de Strasbourg, France.
Environ Int. 2010 Oct;36(7):683-9. doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2010.05.001. Epub 2010 Jun 1.
Very few studies were devoted to permanent effects of nocturnal railway noise on sleep and cardiovascular reactivity. We investigated the effects of nocturnal railway noise on sleep and cardiovascular response in young and middle-aged adults living for many years either near a railway track or in a quiet area. Forty subjects (50% males) divided into two age groups (juniors: 26.2+/-3.6 and seniors: 56.2+/-4.2) participated in this experiment. Half of them lived near a railway track (RW group: 2.6 to 19 years) and the other half in a quiet environment (QE group: 8.1 to 14.2 years). After an adaptation night, all subjects underwent two nights in the laboratory: one control night and one noisy night (30 by-passes of a freight train). Sleep and cardiovascular modifications were assessed in response to noise. Sleep fragmentation indices were lower in RW subjects compared to QE whatever their age. In response to noise, there was a higher cardiovascular response rate to noise in RW juniors and a lower cardiovascular response rate in RW seniors compared to their age-paired QE counterparts. In conclusion, permanent exposure to nocturnal railway noise leads to decreased sleep fragmentation and to cardiovascular habituation. It is suggested that during the initial period experienced by residents living near railway tracks, nocturnal railway noise could induce a sensitization process on the autonomic response to noise reflecting a startle/defense reflex due to its functional significance, which progressively turns to habituation in the long-term if no adverse effect is experienced.
很少有研究致力于探讨夜间铁路噪声对睡眠和心血管反应的长期影响。我们研究了多年居住在铁路附近或安静区域的年轻和中年成年人的睡眠和心血管反应受夜间铁路噪声的影响。40 名受试者（50%为男性）分为两个年龄组（年轻人：26.2+/-3.6 岁和老年人：56.2+/-4.2 岁）参与了这项实验。其中一半居住在铁路附近（RW 组：2.6 至 19 年），另一半居住在安静环境中（QE 组：8.1 至 14.2 年）。在适应了一夜后，所有受试者在实验室中度过了两个晚上：一个对照晚上和一个嘈杂晚上（30 次货运列车经过）。评估了睡眠和心血管变化对噪声的反应。无论年龄如何，RW 组的睡眠片段化指数均低于 QE 组。对噪声的反应中，RW 组的年轻受试者的心血管反应率较高，而 RW 组的老年受试者的心血管反应率较低，与年龄匹配的 QE 对照组相比。总之，长期暴露于夜间铁路噪声会导致睡眠片段化减少和心血管适应。据推测，在居住在铁路附近的居民经历的初始阶段，夜间铁路噪声可能会由于其功能意义而对噪声的自主反应产生敏化过程，这是一种惊吓/防御反射，如果没有不良反应，则会在长期内逐渐适应。
