Looking at the figures for deaths from Parkinson’s in Door County
Reviewing the figures from the state health department is tricky, because for most years, the figures are redacted.
The data is available from https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/wish/mortality/broad-form.htm. The statistics are in the system by groups of years. The total sum for longer time periods is not redacted. However, it is possible to get an idea about changes in the overall frequency of Parkinson’s by comparing multiple time stretches. The redacted years are included in the longer stretches of time.
These are the years which are not redacted:
1998 — 10
2003 — 5
2005 — 6
2009 —13
2011 — 5
2012 — 9
2013 — 6
2014 — 5
2019 — 7
2020 — 5
2022 — 7
The system separates data from 1990 to 1998 from the data from 1999 to 2022.
From 1999 to 2022, there were 101 deaths in Door County due to Parkinson’s disease, and from 1990 to 1998, there were 21 deaths due to Parkinson’s.
With some math and running an extra query in the system, it is possible to look at what the figures were for the first 17 years, and compare it to the following 16 years.
There were 41 deaths for the first 17 years, from 1990 to 2006. That compares to 81 deaths in the following 16 years, from 2007 to 2022. Comparing the differences in the annual average deaths, it represents an increase of 210% between the first 17 years and the last 16 years. Yet this percentage increase is only from a basic calculation, without any statistical tests to back it up.
Another thing to look at are the redacted years. Whenever there were four or less deaths from Parkinson’s in a year, the figures were redacted.
The redacted years are 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2021.
Out of the 33 years of data, 21 of them are redacted. The middle year out of the whole stretch was 2006. 13 of the redacted years are from 2006 or earlier, the first 17 years of data. The remaining 8 redacted years came from the last 16 years of data. If this is part of an overall trend and not due to random factors, it suggests that in future decades there will be even fewer years with four or fewer deaths from Parkinson’s.
It seems that there has been an increase in deaths from Parkinson’s over the 33 years. To understand what is happening more fully, it would be necessary to run one or more statistical tests on the complete figures.
Which factors are contributing to this? The population is getting older, and it has also grown overall from 1990 to 2022. The 1990 census lists the county’s population at 25,690 people, compared to an estimated 30,536 in 2022, with an overall increase of 18.86%.
Over the same years, the population aged 65 years and older increased 117.8%: https://usafacts.org/data/topics/people-society/population-and-demographics/our-changing-population/state/wisconsin/county/door-county/?endDate=2022-01-01&startDate=1990-01-01
Out of the 122 people who died of Parkinson’s, 121 were aged 65 and older. The increase in the elderly population over the 33 years is greater than the increase in deaths from Parkinson’s.
There are other causes to Parkinson’s besides aging. This article discusses what is currently known: https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/parkinsons-disease/parkinsons-disease-risk-factors-and-causes
Other risk factors listed in the article are being male, having had a parent or sibling with Parkinson’s, chemical exposure, and likely also head trauma.
Do you smell your clothes after getting them from the dry cleaners? They shouldn’t smell if they get all the cleaner out, but this article might encourage you to stop trying to see if there is a smell: https://www.urmc.rochester.edu/news/story/common-dry-cleaning-chemical-linked-to-parkinsons-disease
Nationally, there could someday be a ban on a common dry cleaning chemical: https://americandrycleaner.com/articles/epa-seeks-public-input-proposed-ban-perc
If the ban goes through, it might reduce the frequency of Parkinson’s nationwide. In the meantime, the Wisconsin Department of Health has recommendations for things communities can do if people are interested in improving public health related to this issue: https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/publications/p03070.pdf
Do you live or work near a cleaning business that is not recognized as being contaminated? This flyer may be of interest: https://www.nyc.gov/assets/doh/downloads/pdf/environmental/air-tests-for-dry-cleaning-chemicals.pdf
Do You Live by a Dry Cleaner?
Have the air in your apartment tested for free.
If you live on the first or second floor of an apartment building that is above or next to a dry cleaner, you may be exposed to dry cleaning chemicals. These chemicals, including perchloroethylene (PERC), can affect your health.
The New York City Health Department offers free home air testing for residents living by a dry cleaner. If testing determines that the level of PERC in the air is higher than the Health Code limit, the Health Department will take action to enforce the law.
Wisconsin’s DNR also puts out information sheets. These two are of a more general nature:
What is Vapor Intrusion?
https://www.nshealthdept.org/Portals/NsHealthDept.org/Attachment%203%20-%20Vapor%20Intrusion%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf
What to Expect During Vapor Intrusion Sampling
https://cms9files.revize.com/westbendwi/Public%20Works/Vapor%20Intrusion%20DNR%20Quick%20Facts.pdf
For New York City, it isn’t just Parkinson’s they are concerned about: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20169137/ is titled “Association between residential proximity to PERC dry cleaning establishments and kidney cancer in New York City”. The article states:
We found a significant association between the density of PERC dry cleaning establishments and the rate of hospital discharges that include a diagnosis of kidney cancer among persons 45 years of age and older living in New York City. The rate ratio increased by 10 to 27% for the populations in zip codes with higher density of PERC dry cleaners.
The Wisconsin DNR requires contaminated sites to be remediated. This lists eleven such cleanups in Wisconsin: https://search.usa.gov/search/docs?querytech=Wisconsin&querytech=&Search=Search&affiliate=clu-in&utf8=%E2%9C%93&sitelimit=clu-in.org%2Fproducts%2Fdrycleanerprofiles%2F&query=Wisconsin+
There are also many other sites: https://apps.dnr.wi.gov/botw/GetDrycleanReport.do,
There is one “open” site in Sturgeon Bay, involving a closed business: https://apps.dnr.wi.gov/botw/GetActivityDetail.do?dsn=576022
Other posts about public health
https://doorcounty.substack.com/t/public-health