Pollution; ExposureETCHNCT05758714
Effects of Transportation Choices on Commuter Health
An observational study of Pollution; Exposure, run by UConn Health at 1 site in United States.
Trial summary
The primary project objective is to investigate how an individual's choices influence personal exposures to traffic-related air pollutants (TRAPs) and the corresponding acute health effects. TRAPs are a complex mixture of particulate and gaseous pollutants that vary considerably spatially and temporally. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 to 99 yearsHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Pollution; Exposure
- How many people
- 65 participants
- Where
- 1 siteUnited States
- Study dates
- 6 Feb 2023to 24 Apr 2025
- Phase
- Observational
- Are there results?
- None posted in the registry
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 18 to 99 years
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Adult, Older adult
Study population: This study will include 65 working adults (age 18 years and over) who live in Hartford County, CT. Both males and females will be recruited into the study. The study will include all racial/ethnic groups for this study in an attempt to be representative of the Hartford population.
Must be YES to qualify
- Do you live or work in Hartford County?
- Do you normally commute for more than 20 minutes in the morning?
- Does your normal route to work include a heavily trafficked road?
- Can you work outside your home for at least 2 days in a row during the sampling week?
- You will be asked to commute to work by car for two days between 6:30-8:30 am (during rush hour) and outside of the rush hours (before or after that time range) on two different days of the study. You may be the passenger or driver during the commute. Is this something you are willing and able to do?
- Are you willing and able to complete questionnaires/ surveys in English by text message or email?
- Do you have access to e-mail?
- Are you 18 years or older?
Must be NO to qualify
- Are you currently pregnant?
- Do you smoke?
- Do you have usual exposure to environmental tobacco smoke?
- Have you been diagnosed with a chronic lung disease, such as COPD or asthma? Must not have an episode/exacerbation within the last six months
- Are you currently taking hypertension medications?
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
About this study
Official title: Effects of Transportation Choices on Commuter Health (ETCH): Impacts of Modifiable Factors on Personal Exposures and Acute Health
The primary project objective is to investigate how an individual's choices influence personal exposures to traffic-related air pollutants (TRAPs) and the corresponding acute health effects. TRAPs are a complex mixture of particulate and gaseous pollutants that vary considerably spatially and temporally. There is increasing evidence that TRAPs inflict a broad range of deleterious health effects in both health-compromised and healthy individuals, and it has been reported that traffic pollutants may cause up to half of all air pollution-related mortalities. Despite the burden from such widespread, involuntary exposures, few studies have examined the magnitude of personal exposures due to commuting exposures. Most commuters travel to and from work during two peak travel periods, which occur during weekday mornings and evenings. Public transportation, bicycling, and walking have been promoted as ways to reduce air pollution by reducing the vehicle fleet, yet few studies have examined how exposures are modified due to an intentional change in the time of commute or the subsequent health effects.
Read the detailed description
65 participants will be asked to modify the time of day that they commute to work to examine if changes in their time of departure can reduce air pollution exposures and lead to meaningful health benefits. Participants will be asked to commute to work during the morning rush hour for two consecutive days and then outside peak traffic times during a separate sampling period. During the two 48-hour sampling periods, real-time PM2.5, CO, CO2, NO2, O3, temperature, relative humidity, location, and noise will be measured. Passive personal monitors that can sequester more than 1500 chemicals will also be incorporated. These measurements will be complemented with assessments of four urinary biomarkers, urinary benzene, blood pressure, lung function, and pulmonary inflammation of the lower airways. Since TRAPs tend to be most concentrated during two relatively short periods of time, the study goal is to assess if adjustments in personal behavior can result in reduced exposures to TRAPs and lead to health benefits.
- Conditions
- Pollution; Exposure
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Hartford Commuters | Not described |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Blood Pressure measurements before and after the sampling period
Systolic and Diastolic measured on the non-dominant arm
Measured: Collected pre and post each 48-hour sampling period of each participant (4 measurements per participant). Participants will complete all measurements within one season.
Changes in FEV1 (Spirometry)
FEV is short for forced expiratory volume. FEV1 is the amount of air you can force from your lungs in one second. It's measured during a spirometry test, also known as a pulmonary function test, which involves forcefully breathing out into a mouthpiece connected to a spirometer machine.
Measured: Collected pre and post each 48-hour sampling period; also collected after each commute (8 measurements per participant). Participants will complete all measurements within one season.
Changes in FVC (Spirometry)
Forced vital capacity (FVC) is the total amount of air exhaled during the FEV test. Forced expiratory volume and forced vital capacity are lung function tests that are measured during spirometry.
Measured: Collected pre and post each 48-hour sampling period; also collected after each commute (8 measurements per participant). Participants will complete all measurements within one season.
Exhaled Nitric Oxide before and after sampling period
Identifies airway inflammation
Measured: Collected pre and post each 48-hour sampling period (4 measurements per participant). Participants will complete all measurements within one season.
Presence of urinary biomarkers of exposures to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and nitro-PAHs (nPAHs) in urine
Urinary biomarkers of PAHs and nPAHs exposures can be utilized to evaluate systemic inflammation.
Measured: Collected after each 48-hour sampling period (2 measurements per participant). Participants will complete all measurements within one season.
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted7 Mar 2023
- Study start6 Feb 2023
- Primary completion14 Apr 2025
- Study completion24 Apr 2025
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Pollution; ExposureStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Observational
- Observational model
- Cohort
- Time perspective
- Cross-sectional
- Enrolment
- 65 participants (actual)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- UConn Health
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Misti Levy Zamora, UConn Health
- Investigators
- Misti L Zamora, PhD, Principal investigator, UConn Health
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05758714
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- 22-272-1
- Other IDs
- R00ES029116
- Acronym
- ETCH
- Status last verified
- Jun 2025
- First submitted
- 15 Feb 2023
- Last updated
- 11 Jun 2025
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 11 Jun 2025. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Effects of Transportation Choices on Commuter Health (ETCH): Impacts of Modifiable Factors on Personal Exposures and Acute Health
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05758714
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- ETCH / 22-272-1
- Conditions
- Pollution; Exposure
- Study type
- Observational
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Enrolment
- 65 participants (actual)
- Lead sponsor
- UConn HealthUniversity, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)
- Study start
- 6 Feb 2023 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 14 Apr 2025 (actual)
- Study completion
- 24 Apr 2025 (actual)
- First posted
- 7 Mar 2023 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
The primary project objective is to investigate how an individual's choices influence personal exposures to traffic-related air pollutants (TRAPs) and the corresponding acute health effects. TRAPs are a complex mixture of particulate and gaseous pollutants that vary considerably spatially and temporally. There is increasing evidence that TRAPs inflict a broad range of deleterious health effects in both health-compromised and healthy individuals, and it has been reported that traffic pollutants may cause up to half of all air pollution-related mortalities. Despite the burden from such widespread, involuntary exposures, few studies have examined the magnitude of personal exposures due to commuting exposures. Most commuters travel to and from work during two peak travel periods, which occur during weekday mornings and evenings. Public transportation, bicycling, and walking have been promoted as ways to reduce air pollution by reducing the vehicle fleet, yet few studies have examined how exposures are modified due to an intentional change in the time of commute or the subsequent health effects.
Detailed description
65 participants will be asked to modify the time of day that they commute to work to examine if changes in their time of departure can reduce air pollution exposures and lead to meaningful health benefits. Participants will be asked to commute to work during the morning rush hour for two consecutive days and then outside peak traffic times during a separate sampling period. During the two 48-hour sampling periods, real-time PM2.5, CO, CO2, NO2, O3, temperature, relative humidity, location, and noise will be measured. Passive personal monitors that can sequester more than 1500 chemicals will also be incorporated. These measurements will be complemented with assessments of four urinary biomarkers, urinary benzene, blood pressure, lung function, and pulmonary inflammation of the lower airways. Since TRAPs tend to be most concentrated during two relatively short periods of time, the study goal is to assess if adjustments in personal behavior can result in reduced exposures to TRAPs and lead to health benefits.
Study design
- Observational model
- Cohort
- Time perspective
- Cross-sectional
- Number of arms
- 1
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Hartford Commuters | – | – |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 to 99 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
- Study population
- This study will include 65 working adults (age 18 years and over) who live in Hartford County, CT. Both males and females will be recruited into the study. The study will include all racial/ethnic groups for this study in an attempt to be representative of the Hartford population.
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Primary outcome
Blood Pressure measurements before and after the sampling period
Time frame: Collected pre and post each 48-hour sampling period of each participant (4 measurements per participant). Participants will complete all measurements within one season.
Systolic and Diastolic measured on the non-dominant arm
Changes in FEV1 (Spirometry)
Time frame: Collected pre and post each 48-hour sampling period; also collected after each commute (8 measurements per participant). Participants will complete all measurements within one season.
FEV is short for forced expiratory volume. FEV1 is the amount of air you can force from your lungs in one second. It's measured during a spirometry test, also known as a pulmonary function test, which involves forcefully breathing out into a mouthpiece connected to a spirometer machine.
Changes in FVC (Spirometry)
Time frame: Collected pre and post each 48-hour sampling period; also collected after each commute (8 measurements per participant). Participants will complete all measurements within one season.
Forced vital capacity (FVC) is the total amount of air exhaled during the FEV test. Forced expiratory volume and forced vital capacity are lung function tests that are measured during spirometry.
Exhaled Nitric Oxide before and after sampling period
Time frame: Collected pre and post each 48-hour sampling period (4 measurements per participant). Participants will complete all measurements within one season.
Identifies airway inflammation
Presence of urinary biomarkers of exposures to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and nitro-PAHs (nPAHs) in urine
Time frame: Collected after each 48-hour sampling period (2 measurements per participant). Participants will complete all measurements within one season.
Urinary biomarkers of PAHs and nPAHs exposures can be utilized to evaluate systemic inflammation.
Results and safety
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 11 Jun 2025.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
Misti L Zamora, PhD principal investigator
UConn Health
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
An observational study of Pollution; Exposure, run by UConn Health at 1 site in United States.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 11 Jun 2025. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Blood Pressure measurements before and after the sampling period (time frame: Collected pre and post each 48-hour sampling period of each participant (4 measurements per participant). Participants will complete all measurements within one season.). The study lists 5 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 11 Jun 2025.