Long-term exposure to ambient ozone at workplace is positively and non-linearly associated with incident hypertension and blood pressure: longitudinal evidence from the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei medical examination cohort

Are workers also vulnerable to the impact of ambient air pollution? Insight from a large-scale ventilatory exam

It remains unclear how ambient air pollution may affect the prevalence of obstructive ventilatory dysfunction (OVD) among workers. We aim to assess the association of a comprehensive set of ambient air pollutants with OVD prevalence in workers and to explore the potential interactive effects of the occupational factors. This is a population-based cross-sectional study among 305,022 participants from the Guangdong Province, China. Mixed-effects models were used to obtain differences in the OVD risk associated with a 10 μg/m3 increase in ambient air pollution. We found that for each 10 μg/m3 increase in PM2.5, PM10, PM coarse, O3, and NO2 concentrations, the odds ratio (OR) for OVD in workers is 1.324 (95 % confidence interval (CI), 1.282-1.367), 1.292 (95 % CI, 1.268-1.315),1.666 (95 % CI, 1.614-1.719), 1.153 (95 % CI, 1.142-1.165), and 1.023 (95 % CI, 1.012-1.033). We observed that young participants (18-38 years old), women, participants with longer years of service (>48 months), participants working in large enterprises, professional skills workers, and production and manufacturing workers have higher estimated effects. In addition, we also found that workers exposed to high temperatures have higher estimated effects under air pollutants exposure, while workers exposed to noise have higher estimated effects under PM2.5, PM10, NO2, and O3 exposure. Workers exposed to dust have a lower risk of developing OVD under exposure to ambient air pollutants compared to those not exposed. Our results indicate that ambient air pollution increases the risk of OVD in workers. Moreover, air pollutants exhibit a greater estimated effect among workers exposed to high temperatures or noise. Our research findings highlight the importance of fully considering the impact of ambient air pollution on protecting the respiratory health of workers.

The relative contribution of PM2.5 components to the obstructive ventilatory dysfunction-insights from a large ventilatory function examination of 305,022 workers in southern China

BACKGROUND

The new round of WHO/ILO Joint Estimates of the Work-related Burden of Disease assessment requires futher research to provide more evidence, especially on the health impact of ambient air pollution around the workplace. However, the evidence linking obstructive ventilatory dysfunction (OVD) to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and its chemical components in workers is very limited. Evidence is even more scarce on the interactive effects between occupational factors and particle exposures. We aimed to fill these gaps based on a large ventilatory function examination of workers in southern China.

METHODS

We conducted a cross-sectional study among 363,788 workers in southern China in 2020. The annual average concentration of PM2.5 and its components were evaluated around the workplace through validated spatiotemporal models. We used mixed-effect models to evaluate the risk of OVD related to PM2.5 and its components. Results were further stratified by basic characteristics and occupational factors.

FINDINGS

Among the 305,022 workers, 119,936 were observed with OVD. We found for each interquartile range (IQR) increase in PM2.5 concentration, the risk of OVD increased by 27.8 (95 % confidence interval (CI): 26.5-29.2 %). The estimates were 10.9 % (95 %CI: 9.7-12.1 %), 15.8 % (95 %CI: 14.5-17.2 %), 2.6 % (95 %CI: 1.4-3.8 %), 17.1 % (95 %CI: 15.9-18.4 %), and 11 % (95 %CI: 9.9-12.2 %), respectively, for each IQR increment in sulfate, nitrate, ammonium salt, organic matter and black carbon. We observed greater effect estimates among females, younger workers, workers with a length of service of 24-45 months, and professional skill workers. Furthermore, it is particularly noteworthy that the noise-exposed workers, high-temperature-exposed workers, and less-dust-exposed workers were at a 5.7-68.2 % greater risk than others.

INTERPRETATION

PM2.5 and its components were significantly associated with an increased risk of OVD, with stronger links among certain vulnerable subgroups.

A bibliometric analysis of research on the health impacts of ozone air pollution

Ground-level ozone (O3) is one of the major air pollutants. A large body of literature has linked O3 air pollution to various adverse human health effects. The objective of this study is to attain a comprehensive and in-depth understanding of the progress and frontiers of research on O3 and human health. We used bibliometric methods to summarize publications on O3 air pollution and public health between 1990 and 2022 obtained from the Web of Science Core Collection database. VOSviewer and R software were used for bibliometric analysis and visualization. A total of 4501 relevant papers were included in the analysis. There has been a significant increase in the number of publications since 2013, with the USA being the major contributor, followed by China and England. Harvard University was the most prolific research institution, followed by the US Environmental Protection Agency and the University of North Carolina System. Professor Joel Schwartz was the most published author and has established a complex network of national and international collaborations. Co-occurrence analysis of keywords suggested evolving research hotspots, from toxicological studies to population-based epidemiological studies and from the respiratory system to the extra-pulmonary system. Research on O3 and its human health effects has progressed rapidly over the past few decades, but academic disparities still persist between developed and developing countries. There is an urgent need to strengthen international cooperation to address the public health challenges posed by rising O3 air pollution in the future.