Effect of Air Pollution on the Cognitive Function of Adolescents (ATENC!Ó)

Barcelona Institute for Global Health

Status: Completed

Conditions: Decision Making; Risk Behavior; Social Preferences; Attention Impaired; Attention; Risk-Taking

Treatments: Other: Using a sham air purifier (same device without filters); Other: Purifying the air with a Pure Airbox device (Zonair 3D)

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT03762239

PI2030

Details and patient eligibility

About

Previous observational studies have reported an association between higher air pollution exposure and lower attention in children. With this project, the investigators aim to confirm this association in adolescents using an experimental design. In addition, the study will assess the relationship between air pollution exposure and individual preferences with respect to risk, time and social considerations. High school students in 3rd grade (ESO, 14-15 years of age) in different high schools in the Barcelona province (Spain) will be invited to participate. For each class in each high school, participating students will be randomly split into two equal-sized groups. Each group will be assigned to a different classroom where they will complete several activities during two hours, including an attention test (Flanker task) and a reduced version of the Global Preferences Survey. One of the classrooms will have an air purifier that will clean the air. The other classroom will have the same device but without the filters, so it will only re-circulate the air without cleaning it. Students will be masked to intervention allocation. The investigators hypothesize that students assigned to the clean air classroom will have better scores in the attention test, and that decision-making will also present differences in the two classrooms.

Enrollment: 2,123 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 13 to 16 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Students in the 3rd ESO course in participating high schools with signed informed consent

Exclusion criteria

• None

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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2,123 participants in 2 patient groups

Purified air

Active Comparator group

Description:

Purifying the air with a Pure Airbox device (Zonair 3D). Use of air purifier (Pure Airbox, Zonair 3D) in the classroom 30 minutes before the participants enter the room and during the 2 hours of the experiment.

Treatment:

Other: Purifying the air with a Pure Airbox device (Zonair 3D)

Normal air

Sham Comparator group

Description:

Using a sham air purifier (same device without filters). Use of the same air purifier but without filters, so that it only recirculates the air without purifying it. Used for the same time period than the other arm.

Treatment:

Other: Using a sham air purifier (same device without filters)