VOA慢速英语--研究:一些911消防员有更大的心脏病风险

Study: Some 9/11 Firefighters Have Greater Risk of Heart Problems

Doctors have released a study timed to the anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks against the United States.

On that day, militants¹ seized four passenger airplanes and flew them into U.S. targets. Nearly 3,000 people were killed in what Americans now call the 9/11 attacks.

Two of the airplanes hit the World Trade Center buildings in New York City. The strikes led to their collapse² and fires that burned for days. Huge clouds of dust were released into the air.

The new study tells about firefighters who arrived early or spent a lot of time at the World Trade Center site after the 9/11 attacks. It found they seem to have a somewhat higher risk of developing heart problems than firefighters who arrived later or stayed less.

The study might influence any effort to expand the list of health problems eligible³ for payment to victims of the attacks. The money comes from a program set up by the U.S. Congress after the disaster.

The Associated Press noted⁴ limitations of the study. Researchers said they cannot prove that dust or anything else from the disaster caused increased heart risk. The study also does not compare the New York firefighters to the general population or to other emergency workers or construction industry workers.

However, the study does suggest that working at the World Trade Center site raised the risk for some firefighters more than others. It found that those who arrived by noon that day had a 44 percent greater chance of suffering heart problems compared to those who arrived hours or days later.

In addition, the risk of heart problems increased by 33 percent for those who worked in the area for six or more months.

However, the increased risk was evident in a fairly small number of cases. The study found that only about five percent of the firefighters studied had cardiovascular disease.

Risk increases with time

David Prezant is chief medical officer of the Fire Department of the City of New York. He said, “This is a modest increase, not an epidemic⁵.” But he added, “This risk increases over time; it doesn’t disappear.”

The study followed the health of 9,796 male firefighters for 16 years after the disaster. Female firefighters were not included because there were only 25 and their health risk was likely different from the men, the study said.

Researchers examined medical records of the male firefighters before the attacks. They identified 489 heart problems since September 11, 2001. That number included 120 heart attacks and 300 treatments for blocked arteries⁶. The study found that heart-related risks were higher for the 1,600 firefighters who arrived at the trade center by noon.

The researchers noted there are good records of when the firefighters arrived. But there is less information about how long each worked in the area of the disaster.

Judith Graber is a researcher at the Rutgers School of Public Health in New Jersey⁷. She has studied other workers involved in the 9/11 effort. She praised the study, saying the important thing is the additional evidence suggesting increased risk.

Prezant said other studies have suggested a greater risk of heart problems among 9/11 workers. He noted such problems are not covered under the program that treats emergency workers or the victim compensation fund.

U.S. lawmakers set up the fund to help individuals who suffered physical harm and family members of those killed in the attacks.

More than 51,000 people have asked for money from the fund. The Associated Press reported that $5.5 billion has already been paid out. On July 29, lawmakers passed a bill that provides money for the fund until the year 2092.

The results of the study on firefighters were published in JAMA Network Open.

I’m Mario Ritter, Jr.

Words in This Story

respond –v. to answer a call

fund –n. an amount of money available for a special purpose

eligible –adj. able to be receive something

construction –n. related to the business of building structures like buildings

cardiovascular –adj. relating to the heart or blood vessels⁸

epidemic –n. a situation in which a disease spreads quickly and affects many people

arteries –n. tubes that carry blood from the heart to all parts of the body

1 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

2 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

3 eligible   

adj.有条件被选中的；(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的

参考例句：

• He is an eligible young man.他是一个合格的年轻人。
• Helen married an eligible bachelor.海伦嫁给了一个中意的单身汉。

4 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

5 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

6 arteries   

n.动脉( artery的名词复数 )；干线，要道

参考例句：

• Even grafting new blood vessels in place of the diseased coronary arteries has been tried. 甚至移植新血管代替不健康的冠状动脉的方法都已经试过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This is the place where the three main arteries of West London traffic met. 这就是伦敦西部三条主要交通干线的交汇处。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

8 vessels   

n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人

参考例句：

• The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》