Long-term associations of morbidity with air pollution: A catalog and synthesis

Effect of temperature on fast transmission of COVID-19 in low per capita GDP Asian countries

An abrupt outbreak of COVID-19 caused enormous global concerns. Although all countries around the world are severely affected, developing Asian countries faced more difficulties due to their low per capita GDP. The temperature was considered a leading variable in spreading viral diseases, including COVID-19. The present study aimed to assess the relationship between temperature and the spread of COVID-19, with a focus on developing Asian countries. In a few Asian countries, COVID-19 spread rapidly in the summer, while in some countries, there is an increase in winter. A linear correlation was developed between COVID-19 cases/deaths and temperature for the selected countries, which were very weak. A coefficient of determination of 0.334 and 0.365 was observed between cases and average monthly max/min temperatures. A correlation of R2 = 0.307 and 0.382 was found between deaths and average max/min monthly temperatures, respectively. There is no scientific reason to assume that COVID-19 is more dominant at low than high temperatures. Therefore, it is believed that the results may be helpful for the health department and decision-makers to understand the fast spread of COVID-19.

Joint Effects of Long-Term Exposure to Ambient Fine Particulate Matter and Ozone on Asthmatic Symptoms: Prospective Cohort Study

BACKGROUND

The associations of long-term exposure to air pollutants in the presence of asthmatic symptoms remain inconclusive and the joint effects of air pollutants as a mixture are unclear.

OBJECTIVE

We aimed to investigate the individual and joint associations of long-term exposure to ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and daily 8-hour maximum ozone concentrations (MDA8 O3) in the presence of asthmatic symptoms in Chinese adults.

METHODS

Data were derived from the World Health Organization Study on Global Ageing and Adult Health (WHO SAGE) cohort study among adults aged 50 years or older, which was implemented in 1 municipality and 7 provinces across China during 2007-2018. Annual average MDA8 O3 and PM2.5 at individual residential addresses were estimated by an iterative random forest model and a satellite-based spatiotemporal model, respectively. Participants who were diagnosed with asthma by a doctor or taking asthma-related therapies or experiencing related conditions within the past 12 months were recorded as having asthmatic symptoms. The individual associations of PM2.5 and MDA8 O3 with asthmatic symptoms were estimated by a Cox proportional hazards regression model, and the joint association was estimated by a quantile g-computation model. A series of subgroup analyses was applied to examine the potential modifications of some characteristics. We also calculated the population-attributable fraction (PAF) of asthmatic symptoms attributed to PM2.5 and MDA8 O3.

RESULTS

A total of 8490 adults older than 50 years were included, and the average follow-up duration was 6.9 years. During the follow-up periods, 586 (6.9%) participants reported asthmatic symptoms. Individual effect analyses showed that the risk of asthmatic symptoms was positively associated with MDA8 O3 (hazard ratio [HR] 1.12, 95% CI 1.01-1.24, for per quantile) and PM2.5 (HR 1.18, 95% CI 1.05-1.31, for per quantile). Joint effect analyses showed that per equal quantile increment of MDA8 O3 and PM2.5 was associated with an 18% (HR 1.18, 95% CI 1.05-1.33) increase in the risk of asthmatic symptoms, and PM2.5 contributed more (68%) in the joint effects. The individual PAFs of asthmatic symptoms attributable to PM2.5 and MDA8 O3 were 2.86% (95% CI 0.17%-5.50%) and 4.83% (95% CI 1.42%-7.25%), respectively, while the joint PAF of asthmatic symptoms attributable to exposure mixture was 4.32% (95% CI 1.10%-7.46%). The joint associations were greater in participants with obesity, in urban areas, with lower family income, and who used unclean household cooking fuel.

CONCLUSIONS

Long-term exposure to PM2.5 and MDA8 O3 may individually and jointly increase the risk of asthmatic symptoms, and the joint effects were smaller than the sum of individual effects. These findings informed the importance of joint associations of long-term exposure to air pollutants with asthma.

The Reaction of Airways of Employees Working in the Environments Polluted with Heavy Metals in Mine Kosovo

This paper is studied the respiratory function as a result of the impact of air pollution in the environment of the sector of exploitation of heavy minerals such Pb, Zn, Au, Ag, Bi, Cd, PM in the mines of Trepça, Kosovo. Lung function parameters are determined by Body plethysmography. Airway resistance (Raw) was recorded and Intra-Thoracic Gas Volume (ITGV) was measured and specific resistance (SRaw) and airway specific conductance (SGaw) were calculated. The research was done in two groups, the control group and the experimental one. The control group consisted of 24 healthy people, while the experimental one is made up of 52 mining workers for the exploitation of minerals in the Trepçamine, Kosovo. The results obtained from this research indicate that the mean value of specific resistance (SRaw) is significantly higher in the experimental group (p<0.01), compared to the control group (p>0.1). Also, in this study it was confirmed that smoking favors the negative effects of air contamination in the mineral exploitation sector, the changes are significant (p<0.01). Respiratory system parameters of the control group and the experimental group were measured before and after bronchoprovocation with histamine-aerosol (1 mg/ml). The differences between these two groups after provocation were statistically significant (p<0.01). Respiratory changes from air pollution with noxae in mines where metals are mined, it takes a long time for changes in respiratory function to appear. Therefore, exposure of workers to these conditions poses a risk to their health, causing bronchial reactivity, bronchial asthma or, obstructive pulmonary syndrome.

R. Morrison L, Bean de Hernández A, Rakic S, AlOmran M, Alsukait RF, Herbst CH, AlBalawi S. Effective options for addressing air quality– related environmental public health burdens in Saudi Arabia

Air pollution poses major disease burdens globally and accounts for approximately 10% of deaths annually through its contribution to a variety of respiratory, cardiovascular, and other diseases. The burden of disease is particularly acute in Saudi Arabia, where a mix of anthropogenic and natural sources of air pollution threatens public health. Addressing these burdens requires careful study of the costs and effectiveness of available technologies and policies for reducing emissions (mitigation) and avoiding exposure (adaptation). To help evaluate these options, we conduct a semi-systematic literature review of over 3,000 articles published since 2010 that were identified by searches of literature focused on pollution mitigation and pollution adaptation. We identify a wide variety of effective mitigation and adaptation technologies and find that cost-effectiveness information for policy design is highly variable in the case of mitigation, both within and across pollution source categories; or scarce, in the case of adaptation. While pollution control costs are well studied, policy costs differ; these may vary more by location because of factors such as technology operating conditions and behavioral responses to adaptation initiatives, limiting the generalizability of cost-effectiveness information. Moreover, potential cost advantages of multipollutant control policies are likely to depend on the existing mix of pollution sources and controls. While the policy literature generally favors more flexible compliance mechanisms that increase the cost of polluting to reflect its costs to society, important policy design factors include policy co-benefits, distributional concerns, and inter-regional harmonization. In addition to these key themes, we find that further study is needed both to improve the availability of cost information for adaptation interventions and to localize technology and policy cost estimates to the Saudi context.

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Literature review of environmental public health technology and policy options.

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Air pollution mitigation options have considerable cost variation.

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Air pollution adaptation options lack thorough cost effectiveness evaluation.

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Policy effectiveness will depend heavily on local conditions and design.

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Saudi Arabia requires a mix of mitigation and adaptation public health options.

Does ozone inhalation cause adverse metabolic effects in humans? A systematic review

We utilized a practical, transparent approach for systematically reviewing a chemical-specific evidence base. This approach was used for a case study of ozone inhalation exposure and adverse metabolic effects (overweight/obesity, Type 1 diabetes [T1D], Type 2 diabetes [T2D], and metabolic syndrome). We followed the basic principles of systematic review. Studies were defined as "Suitable" or "Supplemental." The evidence for Suitable studies was characterized as strong or weak. An overall causality judgment for each outcome was then determined as either causal, suggestive, insufficient, or not likely. Fifteen epidemiologic and 33 toxicologic studies were Suitable for evidence synthesis. The strength of the human evidence was weak for all outcomes. The toxicologic evidence was weak for all outcomes except two: body weight, and impaired glucose tolerance/homeostasis and fasting/baseline hyperglycemia. The combined epidemiologic and toxicologic evidence was categorized as weak for overweight/obesity, T1D, and metabolic syndrome,. The association between ozone exposure and T2D was determined to be insufficient or suggestive. The streamlined approach described in this paper is transparent and focuses on key elements. As systematic review guidelines are becoming increasingly complex, it is worth exploring the extent to which related health outcomes should be combined or kept distinct, and the merits of focusing on critical elements to select studies suitable for causal inference. We recommend that systematic review results be used to target discussions around specific research needs for advancing causal determinations.

Nanosafety vs. nanotoxicology: adequate animal models for testing in vivo toxicity of nanoparticles

Nanotoxicological studies using existing models of normal cells and animals often encounter a paradox: retention of nanoparticles in intracellular compartments for a long time is not accompanied by any significant toxicological effects. Can we expect that the revealed changes will be not harmful after translation to practice, outside of a sterile laboratory and ideally healthy organisms? Age-associated and pathological processes can affect target organs, metabolism, and detoxification in the mononuclear phagocyte system organs and change biodistribution routes, thus making the use of nanomaterial not safe. The potential solution to this issue can be testing the toxic properties of nanoparticles in animal models with chronic diseases. However, current studies of nanotoxicity in animal models with a brain, cardiovascular system, liver, digestive tract, reproductive system, and skin diseases are unsystematic. Even though these studies demonstrate the emergence of new toxic effects that are not present in healthy animals. In this regard, we set the goal of this review as the formulation of the requirements for an animal model capable of assessing the potential toxicity of nanoparticles based on the nanosafety approach.

Chemical characterization of PM2.5 emitted from China IV and China V light-duty vehicles in China

This study reported the emission factors (EFs) and detailed chemical compositions of PM_2.5 collected from China IV and China V light-duty vehicles (LDVs) through dynamometer test. The China IV LDVs containing 4 gasoline vehicles (GVs) and 4 natural gas vehicles (NGVs) had port fuel injection (PFI) engines, while the China V LDVs included 2 GVs with PFI engines and 2 GVs with gasoline direct injection (GDI) engines. The average EFs of PM_2.5 were 1.90 ± 0.70 mg km^-1, 1.44 ± 0.29 mg km^-1, and 0.56 ± 0.05 mg km^-1 for China IV GVs, China IV NGVs, and China V GVs, respectively. PM_2.5 profiles of LDVs were characterized by abundant carbon species (60.59-68.58%) with low amounts of water soluble ions (WSIs, 6.96-16.37%) and elements (5.20-7.53%). In general, the EFs of PM_2.5 constituents including organic carbon (OC), elemental carbon (EC), WSIs, and elements were reduced obviously by strengthening emission standards from China IV to China V. While the contributions of most WSIs and elements to PM_2.5 increased as vehicle technology improved. Furthermore, the EFs of PM_2.5 components from China IV LDVs also decreased when shifting fuels from gasoline to natural gas. While the fractions of OC, WSIs and most elements in PM_2.5 increased due to the highest reduction rate of EC mass. For China V LDVs, GDI vehicles emitted less OC but more EC compared to PFI vehicles, and the EFs of most WSIs and elements also increased. Overall, GDI vehicles exhibited lower fractions OC and WSIs but higher contents of EC and elements in PM_2.5. Besides, PM_2.5 and its chemical species were heavily dependent on vehicle's driving patterns. The average EFs of PM_2.5 components under aggressive driving pattern increased significantly compared to those under moderate driving pattern.

Integrated Mobile Laboratory for Air Pollution Assessment: Literature Review and cc-TrAIRer Design

To promote research studies on air pollution and climate change, the mobile laboratory cc-TrAIRer (Climate Change—TRailer for AIR and Environmental Research) was designed and built. It consists of a trailer which affords particles, gas, meteorological and noise measurements. Thanks to its structure and its versatility, it can easily conduct field campaigns in remote areas. The literature review presented in this paper shows the main characteristics of the existing mobile laboratories. The cc-TrAIRer was built by evaluating technical aspects, instrumentations and auxiliary systems that emerged from previous studies in the literature. Some of the studies conducted in heterogeneous topography areas, such as the Po Valley and the Alps, using instruments that were chosen to be located on the mobile laboratory are here reported. The preliminary results highlight the future applications of the trailer and the importance of high temporal resolution data acquisition for the characterization of pollution phenomena. The potential applications of the cc-TrAIRer concern different fields, such as complex terrain, emergency situations, worksite and local source impacts and temporal and spatial distributions of atmospheric compounds. The integrated use of gas and particle analysers, a weather station and environment monitoring systems in a single easily transportable vehicle will contribute to research studies on global aspects of climate change.

How will air quality effects on human health, crops and ecosystems change in the future?

Future air quality will be driven by changes in air pollutant emissions, but also changes in climate. Here, we review the recent literature on future air quality scenarios and projected changes in effects on human health, crops and ecosystems. While there is overlap in the scenarios and models used for future projections of air quality and climate effects on human health and crops, similar efforts have not been widely conducted for ecosystems. Few studies have conducted joint assessments across more than one sector. Improvements in future air quality effects on human health are seen in emission reduction scenarios that are more ambitious than current legislation. Larger impacts result from changing particulate matter (PM) abundances than ozone burdens. Future global health burdens are dominated by changes in the Asian region. Expected future reductions in ozone outside of Asia will allow for increased crop production. Reductions in PM, although associated with much higher uncertainty, could offset some of this benefit. The responses of ecosystems to air pollution and climate change are long-term, complex, and interactive, and vary widely across biomes and over space and time. Air quality and climate policy should be linked or at least considered holistically, and managed as a multi-media problem. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue 'Air quality, past present and future'.

The short-term effects of air pollution on respiratory disease hospitalizations in 5 cities in Poland: comparison of time-series and case-crossover analyses

Very few publications have compared different study designs investigating the short-term effects of air pollutants on healthcare visits and hospitalizations for respiratory tract diseases. This study describes, using two different study designs (a case-crossover design and a time-series analysis), the association of air pollutants and respiratory disease hospitalizations. The study has been conducted on 5 cities in Poland on a timeline of almost 4 years. DLNM and regression models were both used for the assessment of the short-term effects of air pollution peaks on respiratory hospitalizations. Both case-crossover and time-series studies equally revealed a positive association between air pollution peaks and hospitalization occurrences. Results were provided in the form of percentage increase of a respiratory visit/hospitalization, for each 10-μg/m3 increment in single pollutant level for both study designs. The most significant estimated % increases of hospitalizations linked to increase of 10 μg/m3 of pollutant have been recorded in general with particulate matter, with highest values for 24 h PM2.5 in Warsaw (6.4%, case-crossover; 4.5%, time series, respectively) and in Białystok (5.6%, case-crossover; 4.5%, time series, respectively). The case-crossover analysis results have shown a larger CI in comparison to the results of the time-series analysis, while the lag days were easier to identify with the case-crossover design. The trends and the overlap of the results occurring from both methods are good and show applicability of both study designs to air pollution effects on short-term hospitalizations.

Gaseous Pollutants and Particulate Matter (PM) in Ambient Air and the Number of New Cases of Type 1 Diabetes in Children and Adolescents in the Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland

The increase in type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) incidence in children is worrying and not yet fully explored. It is suggested that probably air pollution exposure could contribute to the development of T1DM. The aim of the study was to investigate the relationship between the concentration of gaseous pollutants including, nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), nitric oxides (NOx), sulphur dioxide (SO₂), carbon monoxide (CO), and particulate matter (PM) in the air, and the number of new cases of T1DM in children. The number of new cases of T1DM was obtained from the Clinic of Paediatrics, Diabetology, and Endocrinology, Medical University of Gdańsk. The number of children of 0-18 years old in Pomeranian Voivodeship was acquired from the Statistical Yearbook. The concentrations of PM₁₀ absorbance, NO₂, NOx, SO₂, and CO were measured at 41 measuring posts, between 1 January 2015 and 31 December 2016. It was detected that the average annual concentration of PM₁₀ was higher than the value acceptable to the WHO. Furthermore, the average 24-hour concentration of PM₁₀ was 92 μg/m³ and was higher compared to the acceptable value of 50 μg/m³ (acc. to EU and WHO). Moreover, the number of new cases of T1DM showed a correlation with the annual average concentration of PM₁₀ (β = 2.396, p < 0.001), SO₂ (β = 2.294, p < 0.001), and CO (β = 2.452, p < 0.001). High exposure to gaseous pollutants and particulate matter in ambient air may be one of the factors contributing to the risk of developing T1DM in children. Therefore, it is important to take action to decrease air pollutant emissions in Poland. It is crucial to gradually but consistently eliminate the use of solid fuels, such as coal and wood in households, in favour of natural gas and electricity. The development of new technologies to improve air quality, such as "best available techniques" (BAT) or renewable energy sources (water, wind, and solar generation) is of critical importance as well.

Size-resolved measurements of PM2.5 water-soluble elements in Iasi, north-eastern Romania: Seasonality, source apportionment and potential implications for human health

The present paper reports the first size-resolved element measurements in the PM_2.5 fraction collected throughout 2016 in the Iasi urban area in north-eastern Romania. Concentrations of water-soluble elements (Ag, Al, As, B, Ba, Be, Bi, Cd, Co, Cu, Cr, Fe, Ga, Mg, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Rb, Se, Sr, Te, Ti, U, V, Zn) were determined using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Several water-soluble heavy metals (Al, Fe, Zn, As, Cr, Pb) exhibit clear seasonal patterns with maxima over the cold season and minima over the warm season. Elements as Al, Fe, Mg, Zn, Ni, Mn, and Cu present the highest levels in the PM_2.5 fraction, indicating significant contributions from soil-dust resuspension or brake lining and tires. Clear fine mode size-dependent distributions were observed for anthropogenic source-origin elements (Pb, Zn, Cd, V, etc.) due to an acidity-driven metals dissolution process. Positive matrix factorization, concentration weighted trajectory and bivariate polar plot analyses were applied to the entire PM_2.5 database. Based on relative concentrations of various elements, five factors associated with specific sources were identified. The most important contributions to the total PM_2.5 mass concentration (during the total period) come from secondary formation of the ammonium sulfate form (~44%) and from nitrate (~37%). Resuspended dust accounts for a contribution of about 16%, while biomass burning mixed with NaCl salt/sea-salt sources contribute as much as ~3%. Traffic and industrial sources seem to yield little contribution (<0.05%). An assessment investigation of non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic health risks revealed water-soluble arsenic and chromium (VI) as elements with the largest incremental carcinogenic risks. Both metals have traffic and industrial related sources and therefore it is believed that in the future, at the local/regional level, these sources should receive attention by implementing appropriate emission control measures.

Air pollution exposures from multiple point sources and risk of incident chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma

BACKGROUND

Exposure to environmental air pollutants exacerbates respiratory illness, but prospective studies of disease incidence are uncommon. Further, attempts to estimate effects from multiple point sources have rarely been undertaken. The current study examined risk of incident chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma in association with emissions of multiple air pollutants from point pollution sources in Australia.

METHODS

We analyzed prospective cohort data from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health. Women from three age-cohorts (N = 35,755) were followed for up to 21 years for incident COPD and asthma. Exposures were measured from the National Pollutant Inventory and included carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, and particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10). We identified inverse-distance weighted emissions in kilograms that women experienced over time from point sources within 10 km of their residences. Cox proportional hazards regression models examined risk of self-reported doctor-diagnosed COPD and asthma in association with pollutant exposures and covariates.

RESULTS

New COPD cases numbered 3616 (11.5%) and new asthma cases numbered 2725 (9.4%). Participants were exposed to an average of 47-59 sites with air pollution emissions within 10 km of their residences. Fossil fuel electricity generation and mining made the largest contributions to air pollution but hundreds of other types of emissions also occurred. Controlling for covariates, all five air pollutants modeled individually were significantly associated with risk of COPD. Modeled jointly, only sulfur dioxide (SO₂) remained significantly associated with COPD (HR = 1.038, 95% CI = 1.010-1.067), although the five pollutants were highly correlated (r = 0.89). None of the pollutants were significantly associated with adult onset asthma. Cohort-specific analyses indicated that COPD risk was significantly associated with SO₂ exposure for younger (HR = 1.021, CI = 1.001-1.047), middle-age (HR = 1.019, CI = 1.004-1.034) and older cohorts (HR = 1.025, CI = 1.004-1.047).

CONCLUSIONS

Multiple exposure sources and pollutants contributed to COPD risk, including electricity generation and mining but extending to many industrial processes. The results highlight the importance of policy efforts and technological improvements to reduce harmful air pollution emissions across the industrial landscape.

Monthly-Term Associations Between Air Pollutants and Respiratory Morbidity in South Brazil 2013-2016: A Multi-City, Time-Series Analysis

Most air pollution research conducted in Brazil has focused on assessing the daily-term effects of pollutants, but little is known about the health effects of air pollutants at an intermediate time term. The objective of this study was to determine the monthly-term association between air pollution and respiratory morbidity in five cities in South Brazil. An ecological time-series study was performed using the municipality as the unit of observation in five cities in South Brazil (Gravataí, Triunfo, Esteio, Canoas, and Charqueadas) between 2013 and 2016. Data for hospital admissions was obtained from the records of the Hospital Information Service. Air pollution data, including PM₁₀, SO₂, CO, NO₂, and O₃ (µg/m³) were obtained from the environmental government agency in Rio Grande do Sul State. Panel multivariable Poisson regression models were adjusted for monthly counts of respiratory hospitalizations. An increase of 10 μg/m³ in the monthly average concentration of PM₁₀ was associated with an increase of respiratory hospitalizations in all age groups, with the maximum effect on the population aged between 16 and 59 years (IRR: Incidence rate ratio 2.04 (95% CI: Confidence interval = 1.97–2.12)). For NO₂ and SO₂, stronger intermediate-term effects were found in children aged between 6 and 15 years, while for O₃ higher effects were found in children under 1 year. This is the first multi-city study conducted in South Brazil to account for intermediate-term effects of air pollutants on respiratory health.

ATR-FTIR Spectral Analysis and Soluble Components of PM10 And PM2.5 Particulate Matter over the Urban Area of Palermo (Italy) during Normal Days and Saharan Events

Several epidemiological studies have shown a close relationship between the mass of particulate matter (PM) and its effects on human health. This study reports the identification of inorganic and organic components by attenuated total reflectance-Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) analysis in PM₁₀ and PM_2.5 filters collected from three air quality monitoring stations in the city of Palermo (Sicily, Italy) during non-Saharan dust events and Saharan events. It also provides information on the abundance and types of water-soluble species. ATR-FTIR analysis identified sulfate, ammonium, nitrate, and carbonate matter characterized by vibrational frequencies at 603, 615, 670, and 1100 cm^–1 (SO₄^2–); at 1414 cm^–1 (NH₄⁺); at 825 and 1356 cm^–1 (NO₃^–); and at 713, 730, and 877 cm^–1 (CO₃^2–) in PM₁₀ and PM_2.5 filters. Moreover, aliphatic hydrocarbons were identified in the collected spectra. Stretching frequencies at 2950 cm^–1 were assigned to CH₃ aliphatic carbon stretching absorptions, while frequencies at 2924 and 2850 cm^–1 indicated CH₂ bonds. In filters collected during Saharan dust events, the analysis also showed the presence of absorbance peaks typical of clay minerals. The measurement of soluble components confirmed the presence of a geogenic component (marine spray and local rocks) and secondary particles ((NH₄)₂SO₄, NH₄NO₃) in the PM filters. ATR-FTIR characterization of solid surfaces is a powerful analytical technique for identifying inorganic and organic compounds in samples of particulate matter.

Occupational exposure to inorganic particles during pregnancy and birth outcomes: a nationwide cohort study in Sweden

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this study was to investigate if occupational exposure to inorganic particles or welding fumes during pregnancy is associated with negative birth outcomes.

DESIGN

A prospective national cohort study.

SETTING

All single births from 1994 to 2012 in Sweden. Information on birth weight, preterm birth, small for gestational age, smoking habits, nationality, age, occupation, absence from work and education was obtained from nationwide registers. Exposure to inorganic particles (mg/m³) was assessed from a job exposure matrix.

PARTICIPANTS

This study included all single births by occupationally active mothers (995 843).

OUTCOME MEASURES

Associations between occupational exposures and negative birth outcomes in the form of low birth weight, preterm birth and small for gestational age.

RESULTS

Mothers who had high exposure to inorganic particles and had less than 50 days (median) of absence from work during pregnancy showed an increased risk of preterm birth (OR 1.18; 95% CI 1.07 to 1.30), low birth weight (OR 1.32; 95% CI 1.18 to 1.48) as well as small for gestational age (OR 1.20; 95% CI 1.04 to 1.39). The increased risks were driven by exposure to iron particles. No increased risks were found in association with exposure to stone and concrete particles. High exposure to welding fumes was associated with an increased risk of low birth weight (OR 1.22; 95% CI 1.02 to 1.45) and preterm birth (OR 1.24; 95% CI 1.07 to 1.42).

CONCLUSIONS

The results indicate that pregnant women should not be exposed to high levels of iron particles or welding fumes.

Interactive effects of changing stratospheric ozone and climate on tropospheric composition and air quality, and the consequences for human and ecosystem health

The composition of the air we breathe is determined by emissions, weather, and photochemical transformations induced by solar UV radiation. Photochemical reactions of many emitted chemical compounds can generate important (secondary) pollutants including ground-level ozone (O₃) and some particulate matter, known to be detrimental to human health and ecosystems. Poor air quality is the major environmental cause of premature deaths globally, and even a small decrease in air quality can translate into a large increase in the number of deaths. In many regions of the globe, changes in emissions of pollutants have caused significant changes in air quality. Short-term variability in the weather as well as long-term climatic trends can affect ground-level pollution through several mechanisms. These include large-scale changes in the transport of O₃ from the stratosphere to the troposphere, winds, clouds, and patterns of precipitation. Long-term trends in UV radiation, particularly related to the depletion and recovery of stratospheric ozone, are also expected to result in changes in air quality as well as the self-cleaning capacity of the global atmosphere. The increased use of substitutes for ozone-depleting substances, in response to the Montreal Protocol, does not currently pose a significant risk to the environment. This includes both the direct emissions of substitutes during use and their atmospheric degradation products (e.g. trifluoroacetic acid, TFA).

Using multi-site data to apportion PM-bound metal(loid)s: Impact of a manganese alloy plant in an urban area

The identification and quantification of the PM emission sources influencing a specific area is vital to better assess the potential health effects related to the PM exposure of the local population. In this work, a multi-site PM₁₀ sampling campaign was performed in seven sites located in the southern part of the Santander Bay (northern Spain), an urban area characterized by the proximity of some metal(loid) industrial sources (mainly a manganese alloy plant). The total content of V, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Mo, Cd, Sb and Pb was determined by ICP-MS. This multi-site dataset was evaluated by positive matrix factorization (PMF) in order to identify the main anthropogenic metal(loid) sources impacting the studied area, and to quantify their contribution to the measured metal(loid) levels. The attribution of the sources was done by comparing the factor profiles obtained by the PMF analysis with representative profiles from known metal(loid) sources in the area, included in both the European database SPECIEUROPE (V2.0) and the US database EPA-SPECIATE (V4.5) or calculated from literature data. In addition, conditional bivariate probability functions (CBPF)s were used to assist in the identification of the sources. Four metal(loid) sources were identified: Fugitive and point source emissions from the manganese alloy plant (49.9% and 9.9%, respectively), non-exhaust traffic emissions (38.3%) and a minor source of mixed origin (1.8%). The PMF analysis was able to make a clear separation between two different sources from the manganese alloy plant, which represented almost 60% of the total measured metal(loid) levels, >80% of these emissions being assigned to fugitive emissions. These results will be useful for the assessment of the health risk associated with PM₁₀-bound metal(loid) exposure and for the design of efficient abatement strategies in areas impacted by similar industries.