N/A
N=2,123
Effect of Air Pollution on the Cognitive Function of Adolescents
Attention Impaired · Risk-Taking · Risk Behavior · Social Preferences · Decision Making
Bottom Line
View on ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT03762239 ↗Enrolled (actual)
2,123
Serious AEs
—
Results posted
Jun 2025
Primary outcome: Primary: Response Speed Consistency Throughout the Attention Network Task-Flanker Task (Post ANT) — 161.3; 160.2 ms — p=0.52
Study Design & Population
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- N/A
- Interventions
- Purifying the air with a Pure Airbox device (Zonair 3D) (Other); Using a sham air purifier (same device without filters) (Other)
- Age
- Pediatric · 13+ yrs
- Sex
- All
- Sponsor
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health
- Primary completion
- Jun 2019
Outcome Measures
| Outcome | Result | p-value |
|---|---|---|
| PRIMARY Response Speed Consistency Throughout the Attention Network Task-Flanker Task (Post ANT) |
161.3; 160.2 | 0.52 |
| PRIMARY Combined Risk Taking Score |
-0.0210; -0.0121 | 0.72 |
| PRIMARY Combined Patience Score |
-0.1453; -0.0732 | 0.50 |
| PRIMARY Positive Reciprocity Score |
-0.0186; -0.0359 | 0.13 |
| PRIMARY Altruism Score |
0.1118; 0.0597 | 0.58 |
| PRIMARY Trust Score |
5; 5 | 0.89 |
| SECONDARY Impulsivity (From ANT) |
2; 2 | 0.50 |
| SECONDARY Selective Attention (From ANT) |
0; 0 | 0.47 |
| SECONDARY Alerting Score (From ANT) |
42; 44.5 | 0.20 |
| SECONDARY Orienting Score (From ANT) |
12.5; 13.5 | 0.92 |
| SECONDARY Conflict Score (Executive Attention) (From ANT) |
75; 75 | 0.46 |
| SECONDARY Self Assessment of How Good They Are in Math |
6; 6 | 0.232 |
Summary
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.
Eligibility Criteria
Inclusion Criteria
- Students in the 3rd ESO course in participating high schools with signed informed consent
Exclusion Criteria
- None
Data sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT03762239). Outcome figures and adverse-event rates are extracted automatically from the registry's posted results and are provided for clinician reference, not as a substitute for the primary publication.