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Zeng J, Lin G, Dong H, Li M, Ruan H, Yang J. Association Between Nitrogen Dioxide Pollution and Cause-Specific Mortality in China: Cross-Sectional Time Series Study. JMIR Public Health Surveill 2024; 10:e44648. [PMID: 38315528 PMCID: PMC10877496 DOI: 10.2196/44648] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2022] [Revised: 09/18/2023] [Accepted: 01/07/2024] [Indexed: 02/07/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) has been frequently linked to a range of diseases and associated with high rates of mortality and morbidity worldwide. However, there is limited evidence regarding the risk of NO2 on a spectrum of causes of mortality. Moreover, adjustment for potential confounders in NO2 analysis has been insufficient, and the spatial resolution of exposure assessment has been limited. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to quantitatively assess the relationship between short-term NO2 exposure and death from a range of causes by adjusting for potential confounders in Guangzhou, China, and determine the modifying effect of gender and age. METHODS A time series study was conducted on 413,703 deaths that occurred in Guangzhou during the period of 2010 to 2018. The causes of death were classified into 10 categories and 26 subcategories. We utilized a generalized additive model with quasi-Poisson regression analysis using a natural cubic splines function with lag structure of 0 to 4 days to estimate the potential lag effect of NO2 on cause-specific mortality. We estimated the percentage change in cause-specific mortality rates per 10 μg/m3 increase in NO2 levels. We stratified meteorological factors such as temperature, humidity, wind speed, and air pressure into high and low levels with the median as the critical value and analyzed the effects of NO2 on various death-causing diseases at those high and low levels. To further identify potentially vulnerable subpopulations, we analyzed groups stratified by gender and age. RESULTS A significant association existed between NO2 exposure and deaths from multiple causes. Each 10 μg/m3 increment in NO2 density at a lag of 0 to 4 days increased the risks of all-cause mortality by 1.73% (95% CI 1.36%-2.09%) and mortality due to nonaccidental causes, cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, endocrine disease, and neoplasms by 1.75% (95% CI 1.38%-2.12%), 2.06% (95% CI 1.54%-2.59%), 2.32% (95% CI 1.51%-3.13%), 2.40% (95% CI 0.84%-3.98%), and 1.18% (95% CI 0.59%-1.78%), respectively. Among the 26 subcategories, mortality risk was associated with 16, including intentional self-harm, hypertensive disease, and ischemic stroke disease. Relatively higher effect estimates of NO2 on mortality existed for low levels of temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, and air pressure than with high levels, except a relatively higher effect estimate was present for endocrine disease at a high air pressure level. Most of the differences between subgroups were not statistically significant. The effect estimates for NO2 were similar by gender. There were significant differences between the age groups for mortality due to all causes, nonaccidental causes, and cardiovascular disease. CONCLUSIONS Short-term NO2 exposure may increase the risk of mortality due to a spectrum of causes, especially in potentially vulnerable populations. These findings may be important for predicting and modifying guidelines for NO2 exposure in China.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jie Zeng
- Department of Internet Medical Center, Guangdong Second Provincial General Hospital, Guangzhou, China
| | - Guozhen Lin
- Guangzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Guangzhou, China
- Institute of Public Health, Guangzhou Medical University and Guangzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Guangzhou, China
| | - Hang Dong
- Guangzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Guangzhou, China
- Institute of Public Health, Guangzhou Medical University and Guangzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Guangzhou, China
| | - Mengmeng Li
- State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Guangdong Provincial Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, China
| | - Honglian Ruan
- School of Public Health, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jun Yang
- School of Public Health, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
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2
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Pappin AJ, Charman N, Egyed M, Blagden P, Duhamel A, Miville J, Popadic I, Manseau PM, Marcotte G, Mashayekhi R, Racine J, Rittmaster R, Edwards B, Kipusi W, Smith-Doiron M. Attribution of fine particulate matter and ozone health impacts in Canada to domestic and US emission sources. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 909:168529. [PMID: 37963524 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.168529] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2023] [Revised: 11/03/2023] [Accepted: 11/10/2023] [Indexed: 11/16/2023]
Abstract
Exposure to ambient air pollution is associated with a wide range of adverse health effects such as respiratory symptoms, cardiovascular events, and premature mortality. Canada and the United States (US) have worked collaboratively for decades to address transboundary air pollution and its impacts across their shared border. To inform transboundary air quality considerations, we conducted modelling to attribute health impacts from ambient PM2.5 and O3 exposure in Canada to Canadian and US emission sources. We employed emissions, chemical transport, and health impacts modelling for 2015, 2025, and 2035 using a brute-force modelling approach whereby anthropogenic domestic and US emissions were reduced separately by 20 % or 100 %, and the resulting changes in health impacts were estimated across Canada. We find that transboundary PM2.5 and O3 related health impacts vary widely by region, with >80 % of impacts occurring in Central Canada, and most health impacts occurring within 200-300 km of the Canada-US border. The relative contribution of US sources to O3 in Canada is larger than for PM2.5, yet we find that the health impacts from transboundary PM2.5 exceeded those from transboundary O3. Nationally, we estimate that roughly one in five PM2.5 deaths in Canada is attributable to US sources (2000 deaths in 2015) and more than one in two O3 deaths are attributable to US sources (roughly 800 to 1200 deaths in 2015). We project health impacts from domestic and US sources to increase from 2025 to 2035 in Canada. Our results suggest that there are substantial benefits to be gained by domestic and international strategies to reduce PM2.5 in the Canada-US transboundary region.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda J Pappin
- Water and Air Quality Bureau, Safe Environments Directorate, Health Canada, Canada.
| | - Nick Charman
- Water and Air Quality Bureau, Safe Environments Directorate, Health Canada, Canada
| | - Marika Egyed
- Water and Air Quality Bureau, Safe Environments Directorate, Health Canada, Canada
| | - Phil Blagden
- Water and Air Quality Bureau, Safe Environments Directorate, Health Canada, Canada
| | - Annie Duhamel
- Air Quality Policy-Issue Response Section, Meteorological Service of Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canada
| | - Jessica Miville
- Air Quality Policy-Issue Response Section, Meteorological Service of Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canada
| | - Ivana Popadic
- Air Quality Policy-Issue Response Section, Meteorological Service of Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canada
| | - Patrick M Manseau
- Air Quality Policy-Issue Response Section, Meteorological Service of Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canada
| | - Guillaume Marcotte
- Air Quality Policy-Issue Response Section, Meteorological Service of Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canada
| | - Rabab Mashayekhi
- Air Quality Policy-Issue Response Section, Meteorological Service of Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canada
| | - Jacinthe Racine
- Canadian Centre for Climate Services, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canada
| | - Robyn Rittmaster
- Risk Management Bureau, Safe Environments Directorate, Health Canada, Canada
| | - Betty Edwards
- Risk Management Bureau, Safe Environments Directorate, Health Canada, Canada
| | - Wambui Kipusi
- Risk Management Bureau, Safe Environments Directorate, Health Canada, Canada
| | - Marc Smith-Doiron
- Environmental Health Science and Research Bureau, Healthy Environments and Consumer Products Safety Branch, Health Canada, Canada
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Tzortziou M, Loughner CP, Goldberg DL, Judd L, Nauth D, Kwong CF, Lin T, Cede A, Abuhassan N. Intimately tracking NO 2 pollution over the New York City - Long Island Sound land-water continuum: An integration of shipboard, airborne, satellite observations, and models. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 897:165144. [PMID: 37391145 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.165144] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2023] [Revised: 06/23/2023] [Accepted: 06/24/2023] [Indexed: 07/02/2023]
Abstract
Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) pollution remains a serious global problem, particularly near highly populated urbanized coasts that face increasing challenges with climate change. Yet, the combined impact of urban emissions, pollution transport, and complex meteorology on the spatiotemporal dynamics of NO2 along heterogeneous urban coastlines remains poorly characterized. Here, we integrated measurements from different platforms - boats, ground-based networks, aircraft, and satellites - to characterize total column NO2 (TCNO2) dynamics across the land-water continuum in the New York metropolitan area, the most populous area in the United States that often experiences the highest national NO2 levels. Measurements were conducted during the 2018 Long Island Sound Tropospheric Ozone Study (LISTOS), with a main goal to extend surface measurements beyond the coastline - where ground-based air-quality monitoring networks abruptly stop - and over the aquatic environment where peaks in air pollution often occur. Satellite TCNO2 from TROPOMI correlated strongly with Pandora surface measurements (r = 0.87, N = 100) both over land and water. Yet, TROPOMI overall underestimated TCNO2 (MPD = -12%) and missed peaks in NO2 pollution caused by rush hour emissions or pollution accumulation during sea breezes. Aircraft retrievals were in excellent agreement with Pandora (r = 0.95, MPD = -0.3%, N = 108). Stronger agreement was found between TROPOMI, aircraft, and Pandora over land, while over water satellite, and to a lesser extent aircraft, retrievals underestimated TCNO2 particularly in the highly dynamic New York Harbor environment. Combined with model simulations, our shipborne measurements uniquely captured rapid transitions and fine-scale features in NO2 behavior across the New York City - Long Island Sound land-water continuum, driven by the complex interplay of human activity, chemistry, and local scale meteorology. These novel datasets provide critical information for improving satellite retrievals, enhancing air quality models, and informing management decisions, with important implications for the health of diverse communities and vulnerable ecosystems along this complex urban coastline.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Tzortziou
- Earth & Atmospheric Sciences, City College of New York, New York, NY 10031, USA; NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA.
| | | | - Daniel L Goldberg
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
| | - Laura Judd
- NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA 23681, USA
| | - Dilchand Nauth
- Earth & Atmospheric Sciences, City College of New York, New York, NY 10031, USA
| | - Charlotte F Kwong
- Earth & Atmospheric Sciences, City College of New York, New York, NY 10031, USA
| | - Tong Lin
- Earth & Atmospheric Sciences, City College of New York, New York, NY 10031, USA
| | - Alexander Cede
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA; LuftBlick, Kreith, Austria; SciGlob Instruments and Services LLC, Columbia, MD 21046, USA
| | - Nader Abuhassan
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA; SciGlob Instruments and Services LLC, Columbia, MD 21046, USA; Joint Center for Earth Systems Technology, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA
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Mishra A, Lelieveld S, Pöschl U, Berkemeier T. Multiphase Kinetic Modeling of Air Pollutant Effects on Protein Modification and Nitrotyrosine Formation in Epithelial Lining Fluid. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2023; 57:12642-12653. [PMID: 37587684 PMCID: PMC10469477 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c03556] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2023] [Revised: 08/04/2023] [Accepted: 08/07/2023] [Indexed: 08/18/2023]
Abstract
Exposure to ambient air pollution is a major risk factor for human health. Inhalation of air pollutants can enhance the formation of reactive species in the epithelial lining fluid (ELF) of the respiratory tract and can lead to oxidative stress and oxidative damage. Here, we investigate the chemical modification of proteins by reactive species from air pollution and endogenous biological sources using an extended version of the multiphase chemical kinetic model KM-SUB-ELF 2.0 with a detailed mechanism of protein modification. Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and nitrogen dioxide (•NO2) act synergistically and increase the formation of nitrotyrosine (Ntyr), a common biomarker of oxidative stress. Ozone (O3) is found to be a burden on the antioxidant defense system but without substantial influence on the Ntyr concentration. In simulations with low levels of air pollution, the Ntyr concentration in the ELF is consistent with the range of literature values for bronchoalveolar lavage fluid from healthy individuals. With high levels of air pollution, however, we obtain strongly elevated Ntyr concentrations. Our model analysis shows how chemical reactions of air pollutants can modify proteins and thus their functionality in the human body, elucidating a molecular pathway that may explain air pollutant effects on human health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ashmi Mishra
- Multiphase Chemistry Department, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Hahn-Meitner-Weg 1, 55128, Mainz, Germany
| | - Steven Lelieveld
- Multiphase Chemistry Department, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Hahn-Meitner-Weg 1, 55128, Mainz, Germany
| | - Ulrich Pöschl
- Multiphase Chemistry Department, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Hahn-Meitner-Weg 1, 55128, Mainz, Germany
| | - Thomas Berkemeier
- Multiphase Chemistry Department, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Hahn-Meitner-Weg 1, 55128, Mainz, Germany
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5
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He MZ, Yitshak-Sade M, Just AC, Gutiérrez-Avila I, Dorman M, de Hoogh K, Mijling B, Wright RO, Kloog I. Predicting fine-scale daily NO 2 over Mexico City using an ensemble modeling approach. ATMOSPHERIC POLLUTION RESEARCH 2023; 14:101763. [PMID: 37193345 PMCID: PMC10168642 DOI: 10.1016/j.apr.2023.101763] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/18/2023]
Abstract
In recent years, there has been growing interest in developing air pollution prediction models to reduce exposure measurement error in epidemiologic studies. However, efforts for localized, fine-scale prediction models have been predominantly focused in the United States and Europe. Furthermore, the availability of new satellite instruments such as the TROPOsopheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) provides novel opportunities for modeling efforts. We estimated daily ground-level nitrogen dioxide (NO2) concentrations in the Mexico City Metropolitan Area at 1-km2 grids from 2005 to 2019 using a four-stage approach. In stage 1 (imputation stage), we imputed missing satellite NO2 column measurements from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) and TROPOMI using the random forest (RF) approach. In stage 2 (calibration stage), we calibrated the association of column NO2 to ground-level NO2 using ground monitors and meteorological features using RF and extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) models. In stage 3 (prediction stage), we predicted the stage 2 model over each 1-km2 grid in our study area, then ensembled the results using a generalized additive model (GAM). In stage 4 (residual stage), we used XGBoost to model the local component at the 200-m2 scale. The cross-validated R2 of the RF and XGBoost models in stage 2 were 0.75 and 0.86 respectively, and 0.87 for the ensembled GAM. Cross-validated rootmean-squared error (RMSE) of the GAM was 3.95 μg/m3. Using novel approaches and newly available remote sensing data, our multi-stage model presented high cross-validated fits and reconstructs fine-scale NO2 estimates for further epidemiologic studies in Mexico City.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mike Z. He
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Maayan Yitshak-Sade
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Allan C. Just
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Iván Gutiérrez-Avila
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Michael Dorman
- Department of Geography and Environmental Development, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, Israel
| | - Kees de Hoogh
- Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Basel, Switzerland
- University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Bas Mijling
- Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute, De Bilt, Netherlands
| | - Robert O. Wright
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Itai Kloog
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
- Department of Geography and Environmental Development, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, Israel
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6
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Dressel I, Demetillo MA, Judd LM, Janz SJ, Fields KP, Sun K, Fiore AM, McDonald BC, Pusede SE. Daily Satellite Observations of Nitrogen Dioxide Air Pollution Inequality in New York City, New York and Newark, New Jersey: Evaluation and Application. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2022; 56:15298-15311. [PMID: 36224708 PMCID: PMC9670852 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.2c02828] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
Urban air pollution disproportionately harms communities of color and low-income communities in the U.S. Intraurban nitrogen dioxide (NO2) inequalities can be observed from space using the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI). Past research has relied on time-averaged measurements, limiting our understanding of how neighborhood-level NO2 inequalities co-vary with urban air quality and climate. Here, we use fine-scale (250 m × 250 m) airborne NO2 remote sensing to demonstrate that daily TROPOMI observations resolve a major portion of census tract-scale NO2 inequalities in the New York City-Newark urbanized area. Spatiotemporally coincident TROPOMI and airborne inequalities are well correlated (r = 0.82-0.97), with slopes of 0.82-1.05 for relative and 0.76-0.96 for absolute inequalities for different groups. We calculate daily TROPOMI NO2 inequalities over May 2018-September 2021, reporting disparities of 25-38% with race, ethnicity, and/or household income. Mean daily inequalities agree with results based on TROPOMI measurements oversampled to 0.01° × 0.01° to within associated uncertainties. Individual and mean daily TROPOMI NO2 inequalities are largely insensitive to pixel size, at least when pixels are smaller than ∼60 km2, but are sensitive to low observational coverage. We statistically analyze daily NO2 inequalities, presenting empirical evidence of the systematic overburdening of communities of color and low-income neighborhoods with polluting sources, regulatory ozone co-benefits, and worsened NO2 inequalities and cumulative NO2 and urban heat burdens with climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabella
M. Dressel
- Department
of Environmental Sciences, University of
Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
| | - Mary Angelique
G. Demetillo
- Department
of Environmental Sciences, University of
Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
| | - Laura M. Judd
- NASA
Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia 23681, United States
| | - Scott J. Janz
- NASA
Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland 20771, United States
| | - Kimberly P. Fields
- Carter
G. Woodson Institute for African American and African Studies, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
| | - Kang Sun
- Department
of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York 14260, United States
- Research
and Education in eNergy, Environment and Water (RENEW) Institute, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York 14260, United States
| | - Arlene M. Fiore
- Department
of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States
| | - Brian C. McDonald
- Chemical
Sciences Laboratory, NOAA Earth System Research
Laboratories, Boulder, Colorado 80305, United
States
| | - Sally E. Pusede
- Department
of Environmental Sciences, University of
Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
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7
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Vrekoussis M, Pikridas M, Rousogenous C, Christodoulou A, Desservettaz M, Sciare J, Richter A, Bougoudis I, Savvides C, Papadopoulos C. Local and regional air pollution characteristics in Cyprus: A long-term trace gases observations analysis. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 845:157315. [PMID: 35839895 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.157315] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2022] [Revised: 06/22/2022] [Accepted: 07/08/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Observations of key gaseous trace pollutants, namely NO, NOy, CO, SO2 and O3, performed at several curb, residential, industrial, background and free-troposphere sites were analyzed to assess the temporal and spatial variability of pollution in Cyprus. Notably, the analysis utilized one of the longest datasets of 17 years of measurements (2003-2019) in the East Mediterranean and the Middle East (EMME). This region is considered a regional hotspot of ozone and aerosol pollution. A trend analysis revealed that at several stations, a statistically significant decrease in primary pollutant concentration is recorded, most likely due to pollution control strategies. In contrast, at four stations, a statistically significant increase in ozone levels, ranging between 0.36 ppbv y-1 and 0.82 ppbv y-1, has been observed, attributed to the above strategies targeting the reduction of nitrogen oxides (NOx) but not that of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). The NO and NOy, and CO levels at the Agia Marina regional background station were two orders of magnitude and four times lower, respectively, than the ones of the urban centers. The latter denotes that local emissions are not negligible and control a large fraction of the observed interannual and diurnal variability. Speciation analysis showed that traffic and other local emissions are the sources of urban NO and NOy. At the same time, 46 % of SO2 and 40 % of CO, on average, originate from long-range regional transport. Lastly, a one-year analysis of tropospheric NO2 vertical columns from the TROPOMI satellite instrument revealed a west-east low-to-high gradient over the island, with all major hotspots, including cities and powerplants, being visible from space. With the help of an unsupervised machine learning approach, it was found that these specific hotspots contribute overall around 10 % to the total NO2 tropospheric columns.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Vrekoussis
- Climate and Atmosphere Research Center (CARE-C), The Cyprus Institute, Cyprus; Institute of Environmental Physics and Remote Sensing (IUP), University of Bremen, Germany; Center of Marine Environmental Sciences (MARUM), University of Bremen, Germany.
| | - M Pikridas
- Climate and Atmosphere Research Center (CARE-C), The Cyprus Institute, Cyprus
| | - C Rousogenous
- Climate and Atmosphere Research Center (CARE-C), The Cyprus Institute, Cyprus
| | - A Christodoulou
- Climate and Atmosphere Research Center (CARE-C), The Cyprus Institute, Cyprus; IMT Lille Douai, Institut Mines-Télécom, Univ. Lille, Centre for Energy and Environment, Lille, France
| | - M Desservettaz
- Climate and Atmosphere Research Center (CARE-C), The Cyprus Institute, Cyprus
| | - J Sciare
- Climate and Atmosphere Research Center (CARE-C), The Cyprus Institute, Cyprus
| | - A Richter
- Institute of Environmental Physics and Remote Sensing (IUP), University of Bremen, Germany
| | - I Bougoudis
- Institute of Environmental Physics and Remote Sensing (IUP), University of Bremen, Germany
| | - C Savvides
- Ministry of Labour, Welfare and Social Insurance, Department of Labour Inspection (DLI), Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - C Papadopoulos
- Ministry of Labour, Welfare and Social Insurance, Department of Labour Inspection (DLI), Nicosia, Cyprus
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Tzortziou M, Kwong CF, Goldberg D, Schiferl L, Commane R, Abuhassan N, Szykman JJ, Valin LC. Declines and peaks in NO 2 pollution during the multiple waves of the COVID-19 pandemic in the New York metropolitan area. ATMOSPHERIC CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS 2022; 22:2399-2417. [PMID: 36590031 PMCID: PMC9798457 DOI: 10.5194/acp-22-2399-2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic created an extreme natural experiment in which sudden changes in human behavior and economic activity resulted in significant declines in nitrogen oxide (NO x ) emissions, immediately after strict lockdowns were imposed. Here we examined the impact of multiple waves and response phases of the pandemic on nitrogen dioxide (NO2) dynamics and the role of meteorology in shaping relative contributions from different emission sectors to NO2 pollution in post-pandemic New York City. Long term (> 3.5 years), high frequency measurements from a network of ground-based Pandora spectrometers were combined with TROPOMI satellite retrievals, meteorological data, mobility trends, and atmospheric transport model simulations to quantify changes in NO2 across the New York metropolitan area. The stringent lockdown measures after the first pandemic wave resulted in a decline in top-down NO x emissions by approx. 30% on top of long-term trends, in agreement with sector-specific changes in NO x emissions. Ground-based measurements showed a sudden drop in total column NO2 in spring 2020, by up to 36% in Manhattan and 19%-29% in Queens, New Jersey (NJ), and Connecticut (CT), and a clear weakening (by 16%) of the typical weekly NO2 cycle. Extending our analysis to more than a year after the initial lockdown captured a gradual recovery in NO2 across the NY/NJ/CT tri-state area in summer and fall 2020, as social restrictions eased, followed by a second decline in NO2 coincident with the second wave of the pandemic and resurgence of lockdown measures in winter 2021. Meteorology was not found to have a strong NO2 biassing effect in New York City after the first pandemic wave. Winds, however, were favorable for low NO2 conditions in Manhattan during the second wave of the pandemic, resulting in larger column NO2 declines than expected based on changes in transportation emissions alone. Meteorology played a key role in shaping the relative contributions from different emission sectors to NO with low-speed (< 5 ms-1) SW-SE winds enhancing contributions from the high-emitting power-generation sector in NJ and Queens and driving particularly high NO2 pollution episodes in Manhattan, even during - and despite - the stringent early lockdowns. These results have important implications for air quality management in New York City, and highlight the value of high resolution NO2 measurements in assessing the effects of rapid meteorological changes on air quality conditions and the effectiveness of sector-specific NO x emission control strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Tzortziou
- Center for Discovery and Innovation, Earth & Atmospheric Sciences, City College of New York, New York, NY 10031, USA
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - Charlotte F. Kwong
- Center for Discovery and Innovation, Earth & Atmospheric Sciences, City College of New York, New York, NY 10031, USA
| | - Daniel Goldberg
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
| | - Luke Schiferl
- Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, Palisades, NY 10964, USA
| | - Róisín Commane
- Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, Palisades, NY 10964, USA
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | - Nader Abuhassan
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
- Joint Center for Earth Systems Technology, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA
| | - James J. Szykman
- NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA 23666, USA
- US EPA/Office of Research and Development/Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27709, USA
| | - Lukas C. Valin
- US EPA/Office of Research and Development/Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27709, USA
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9
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Shin HH, Maquiling A, Thomson EM, Park IW, Stieb DM, Dehghani P. Sex-difference in air pollution-related acute circulatory and respiratory mortality and hospitalization. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 806:150515. [PMID: 34627116 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.150515] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2021] [Revised: 09/15/2021] [Accepted: 09/18/2021] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Numerous studies have estimated adverse effects of short-term exposure to ambient air pollution on public health. Few have focused on sex-differences, and results have been inconsistent. The purpose of this study was three-fold: to identify sex-differences in air pollution-related health outcomes; to examine sex-differences by cause and season; and to examine time trends in sex-differences. METHODS Daily data were collected on circulatory- and respiratory-related mortality (for 29 years) and cause-specific hospitalization (for 17 years) with hourly concentrations of ozone (O3), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and fine particulate matter (PM2.5). For hospitalization, more specific causes were examined: ischemic heart disease (IHD), other heart disease (OHD), cerebrovascular disease (CEV), chronic lower respiratory diseases (CLRD), and Influenza/Pneumonia (InfPn). Generalized Poisson models were applied to 24 Canadian cities, and the city-specific estimates were combined for nationwide estimates for each sex using Bayesian hierarchical models. Finally, sex-differences were tested statistically based on their interval estimates, considering the correlation between sex-specific national estimates. RESULTS Sex-differences were more frequently observed for hospitalization than mortality, respiratory than circulatory health outcomes, and warm than cold season. For hospitalization, males were at higher risk (M > F) for warm season (OHD and InfPn from O3; IHD from NO2; and InfPn from PM2.5), but F > M for cold season (CEV from O3 and OHD from NO2). For mortality, we found F > M only for circulatory diseases from ozone during the warm season. Among the above-mentioned sex-differences, three cases showed consistent time trends over the years: while M > F for OHD from O3 and IHD from NO2, F > M for OHD from NO2. CONCLUSIONS We found that sex-differences in effect of ambient air pollution varied over health outcome, cause, season and time. In particular, the consistent trends (either F > M or M > F) across 17 years provide stronger evidence of sex-differences in hospitalizations, and warrant investigation in other populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hwashin H Shin
- Environmental Health Science and Research Bureau, Health Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada; Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada.
| | - Aubrey Maquiling
- Environmental Health Science and Research Bureau, Health Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
| | - Errol M Thomson
- Environmental Health Science and Research Bureau, Health Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada; Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology, and Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
| | - In-Woo Park
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Genetics, University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, TX, USA.
| | - Dave M Stieb
- Environmental Health Science and Research Bureau, Health Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada; School of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
| | - Parvin Dehghani
- Environmental Health Science and Research Bureau, Health Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
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10
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Gopikrishnan GS, Kuttippurath J, Raj S, Singh A, Abbhishek K. Air Quality during the COVID–19 Lockdown and Unlock Periods in India Analyzed Using Satellite and Ground-based Measurements. ENVIRONMENTAL PROCESSES 2022; 9:28. [PMCID: PMC9059918 DOI: 10.1007/s40710-022-00585-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
Abstract A nationwide lockdown was imposed in India from 24 March 2020 to 31 May 2020 to contain the spread of COVID-19. The lockdown has changed the atmospheric pollution across the continents. Here, we analyze the changes in two most important air quality related trace gases, nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and tropospheric ozone (O3) from satellite and surface observations, during the lockdown (April–May 2020) and unlock periods (June–September 2020) in India, to examine the baseline emissions when anthropogenic sources were significantly reduced. We use the Bayesian statistics to find the changes in these trace gas concentrations in different time periods. There is a strong reduction in NO2 during the lockdown as public transport and industries were shut during that period. The largest changes are found in IGP (Indo-Gangetic Plain), and industrial and mining areas in Eastern India. The changes are small in the hilly regions, where the concentrations of these trace gases are also very small (0–1 × 1015 molec./cm2). In addition, a corresponding increase in the concentrations of tropospheric O3 is observed during the period. The analyses over cities show that there is a large decrease in NO2 in Delhi (36%), Bangalore (21%) and Ahmedabad (21%). As the lockdown restrictions were eased during the unlock period, the concentrations of NO2 gradually increased and ozone deceased in most regions. Therefore, this study suggests that pollution control measures should be prioritized, ensuring strict regulations to control the source of anthropogenic pollutants, particularly from the transport and industrial sectors. Highlights • Most cities show a reduction up to 15% of NO2 during the lockdown • The unlock periods show again an increase of about 40–50% in NO2 • An increase in tropospheric O3 is observed together with the decrease in NO2 Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40710-022-00585-9.
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Affiliation(s)
- G. S. Gopikrishnan
- CORAL, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, 721302 Kharagpur, West Bengal India
| | - J. Kuttippurath
- CORAL, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, 721302 Kharagpur, West Bengal India
| | - S. Raj
- CORAL, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, 721302 Kharagpur, West Bengal India
| | - A. Singh
- CORAL, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, 721302 Kharagpur, West Bengal India
| | - K. Abbhishek
- CORAL, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, 721302 Kharagpur, West Bengal India
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11
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Ambient air pollution and inflammatory effects in a Canadian pregnancy cohort. Environ Epidemiol 2021; 5:e168. [PMID: 34934889 PMCID: PMC8683146 DOI: 10.1097/ee9.0000000000000168] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2021] [Accepted: 07/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text. Background: Epidemiologic studies have consistently reported associations between air pollution and pregnancy outcomes including preeclampsia and gestational diabetes. However, the biologic mechanisms underlying these relationships remain unclear as few studies have collected relevant biomarker data. We examined relationships between ambient PM2.5 and NO2 with markers of inflammation during pregnancy in a prospective cohort of Canadian women. Methods: We analyzed data from 1170 women enrolled in the Maternal-Infant Research on Environmental Chemicals study. Daily residential PM2.5 and NO2 exposures during pregnancy were estimated using satellite-based and land-use regression models and used to create 14-day and 30-day exposure windows before blood-draw. Inflammatory markers C-reactive protein, interleukin-6, interleukin-8, and tumor necrosis factor-α were measured in third trimester plasma samples. Multivariable linear regression was used to estimate associations for an interquartile range (IQR) increase in PM2.5 and NO2 and markers of inflammation, while adjusting for individual-level confounders. Results: Fourteen-day (IQR: 6.85 µg/m3) and 30-day (IQR: 6.15 µg/m3) average PM2.5 exposures before blood-draw were positively associated with C-reactive protein after adjustment for covariates (24.6% [95% CI = 9.4, 41.9] and 17.4% [95% CI = 1.0, 35.0] increases, respectively). This association was found to be robust in several sensitivity analyses. Neither PM2.5 nor NO2 exposures were associated with interleukin-6, interleukin-8, or tumor necrosis factor-α. Conclusion: Exposure to ambient PM2.5 is positively associated with maternal inflammatory pathways in late pregnancy. This may contribute to positive associations between ambient PM2.5 and risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes.
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12
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Ahmed MM, Hoque ME, Rahman S, Roy PK, Alam F, Rahman MM, Rahman MM, Hopke PK. Prediction of COVID-19 Cases from the Nexus of Air Quality and Meteorological Phenomena: Bangladesh Perspective. EARTH SYSTEMS AND ENVIRONMENT 2021; 6:307-325. [PMID: 34870076 PMCID: PMC8627582 DOI: 10.1007/s41748-021-00278-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2021] [Revised: 10/13/2021] [Accepted: 11/09/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
An integrated approach was used to estimate the number of COVID-19 patients related to air quality and meteorological phenomena. Additionally, the air quality during pre-lockdown, lockdown, and post-lockdown stages of the COVID-19 pandemic was assessed to determine the effect of the infection containment measures taken in Bangladesh during the pandemic. The air quality was assessed based on measurements of nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), ozone (O3), carbon monoxide (CO), black carbon, particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10), and aerosol optical depth. Time-averaged maps of these parameters have been generated from NASA's (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) website. Values of these parameters have also been collected from a continuous air monitoring station (CAMS) located in Bangladesh's north-western city Rajshahi. The comparison shows that lockdown during the pandemic has brought significant improvements in air quality. However, the improvement was not sustained, since rapid increases in the air pollutant concentrations were observed in the post-lockdown period. Furthermore, Pearson correlation coefficients between each air quality variable and the daily new COVID-19 case rates were calculated. Different meteorological variables during the same time periods were determined to observe the variation in Rajshahi city. Relationships of these variables with the case rates were also established. Additionally, statistical analyses of the obtained data have been conducted for the measured variables using the Kruskal-Wallis test to assess the differences in the observed data among the pre-lockdown, lockdown, and post-lockdown periods. Dunn's "Q" test was employed to test if the variables showed significance statistical difference during the Kruskal-Wallis test for pairwise comparisons. From the study, it has been observed that both meteorological variables and air quality parameters have significant relationship with daily new COVID-19 case rates. Both positive and negative associations of these parameters with the COVID-19 case rates have been observed. Very high air pollution has been observed in the post-lockdown period. Thus, it is recommended that appropriate authorities undertake corrective measures to protect the environment in cities with large populations. This study provides guidance for decision makers and health officials for future research and potentially reducing the spread of COVID-19.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mim Mashrur Ahmed
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Rajshahi University of Engineering & Technology, Rajshahi, Bangladesh
| | - Md. Emdadul Hoque
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Rajshahi University of Engineering & Technology, Rajshahi, Bangladesh
| | - Shahanaj Rahman
- Department of Environment, Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Dhaka, Bangladesh
| | - Proshanta Kumar Roy
- Department of Environment, Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Dhaka, Bangladesh
| | - Firoz Alam
- School of Engineering, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia
| | | | - Md. Mostafizur Rahman
- Institute for Future Transport and Cities, School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Automotive Engineering, Coventry University, Coventry, UK
| | - Philip K. Hopke
- Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Rochester, NY USA
- Institute for a Sustainable Environment, Clarkson University, Potsdam, NY USA
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13
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Lelieveld S, Wilson J, Dovrou E, Mishra A, Lakey PSJ, Shiraiwa M, Pöschl U, Berkemeier T. Hydroxyl Radical Production by Air Pollutants in Epithelial Lining Fluid Governed by Interconversion and Scavenging of Reactive Oxygen Species. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2021; 55:14069-14079. [PMID: 34609853 PMCID: PMC8529872 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.1c03875] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2021] [Revised: 09/06/2021] [Accepted: 09/17/2021] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Air pollution is a major risk factor for human health. Chemical reactions in the epithelial lining fluid (ELF) of the human respiratory tract result in the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which can lead to oxidative stress and adverse health effects. We use kinetic modeling to quantify the effects of fine particulate matter (PM2.5), ozone (O3), and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) on ROS formation, interconversion, and reactivity, and discuss different chemical metrics for oxidative stress, such as cumulative production of ROS and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) to hydroxyl radical (OH) conversion. All three air pollutants produce ROS that accumulate in the ELF as H2O2, which serves as reservoir for radical species. At low PM2.5 concentrations (<10 μg m-3), we find that less than 4% of all produced H2O2 is converted into highly reactive OH, while the rest is intercepted by antioxidants and enzymes that serve as ROS buffering agents. At elevated PM2.5 concentrations (>10 μg m-3), however, Fenton chemistry overwhelms the ROS buffering effect and leads to a tipping point in H2O2 fate, causing a strong nonlinear increase in OH production. This shift in ROS chemistry and the enhanced OH production provide a tentative mechanistic explanation for how the inhalation of PM2.5 induces oxidative stress and adverse health effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Steven Lelieveld
- Multiphase
Chemistry Department, Max Planck Institute
for Chemistry, 55128 Mainz, Germany
| | - Jake Wilson
- Multiphase
Chemistry Department, Max Planck Institute
for Chemistry, 55128 Mainz, Germany
| | - Eleni Dovrou
- Multiphase
Chemistry Department, Max Planck Institute
for Chemistry, 55128 Mainz, Germany
| | - Ashmi Mishra
- Multiphase
Chemistry Department, Max Planck Institute
for Chemistry, 55128 Mainz, Germany
| | - Pascale S. J. Lakey
- Department
of Chemistry, University of California,
Irvine, Irvine, California 92697, United States
| | - Manabu Shiraiwa
- Department
of Chemistry, University of California,
Irvine, Irvine, California 92697, United States
| | - Ulrich Pöschl
- Multiphase
Chemistry Department, Max Planck Institute
for Chemistry, 55128 Mainz, Germany
| | - Thomas Berkemeier
- Multiphase
Chemistry Department, Max Planck Institute
for Chemistry, 55128 Mainz, Germany
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14
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The Role of Fossil Fuel Combustion Metals in PM2.5 Air Pollution Health Associations. ATMOSPHERE 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/atmos12091086] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
In this review, we elucidate the central role played by fossil fuel combustion in the health-related effects that have been associated with inhalation of ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5). We especially focus on individual properties and concentrations of metals commonly found in PM air pollution, as well as their sources and their adverse health effects, based on both epidemiologic and toxicological evidence. It is known that transition metals, such as Ni, V, Fe, and Cu, are highly capable of participating in redox reactions that produce oxidative stress. Therefore, particles that are enriched, per unit mass, in these metals, such as those from fossil fuel combustion, can have greater potential to produce health effects than other ambient particulate matter. Moreover, fossil fuel combustion particles also contain varying amounts of sulfur, and the acidic nature of the resulting sulfur compounds in particulate matter (e.g., as ammonium sulfate, ammonium bisulfate, or sulfuric acid) makes transition metals in particles more bioavailable, greatly enhancing the potential of fossil fuel combustion PM2.5 to cause oxidative stress and systemic health effects in the human body. In general, there is a need to further recognize particulate matter air pollution mass as a complex source-driven mixture, in order to more effectively quantify and regulate particle air pollution exposure health risks.
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15
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He MZ, Do V, Liu S, Kinney PL, Fiore AM, Jin X, DeFelice N, Bi J, Liu Y, Insaf TZ, Kioumourtzoglou MA. Short-term PM 2.5 and cardiovascular admissions in NY State: assessing sensitivity to exposure model choice. Environ Health 2021; 20:93. [PMID: 34425829 PMCID: PMC8383435 DOI: 10.1186/s12940-021-00782-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2021] [Accepted: 08/10/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Air pollution health studies have been increasingly using prediction models for exposure assessment even in areas without monitoring stations. To date, most studies have assumed that a single exposure model is correct, but estimated effects may be sensitive to the choice of exposure model. METHODS We obtained county-level daily cardiovascular (CVD) admissions from the New York (NY) Statewide Planning and Resources Cooperative System (SPARCS) and four sets of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) spatio-temporal predictions (2002-2012). We employed overdispersed Poisson models to investigate the relationship between daily PM2.5 and CVD, adjusting for potential confounders, separately for each state-wide PM2.5 dataset. RESULTS For all PM2.5 datasets, we observed positive associations between PM2.5 and CVD. Across the modeled exposure estimates, effect estimates ranged from 0.23% (95%CI: -0.06, 0.53%) to 0.88% (95%CI: 0.68, 1.08%) per 10 µg/m3 increase in daily PM2.5. We observed the highest estimates using monitored concentrations 0.96% (95%CI: 0.62, 1.30%) for the subset of counties where these data were available. CONCLUSIONS Effect estimates varied by a factor of almost four across methods to model exposures, likely due to varying degrees of exposure measurement error. Nonetheless, we observed a consistently harmful association between PM2.5 and CVD admissions, regardless of model choice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mike Z. He
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY USA
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine At Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, Box 1057, New York, NY 10029 USA
| | - Vivian Do
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY USA
| | - Siliang Liu
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY USA
| | - Patrick L. Kinney
- Department of Environmental Health, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA USA
| | - Arlene M. Fiore
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Columbia University, New York, NY USA
- Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, Palisades, NY USA
| | - Xiaomeng Jin
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA USA
| | - Nicholas DeFelice
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine At Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, Box 1057, New York, NY 10029 USA
| | - Jianzhao Bi
- Department of Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences, University of Washington School of Public Health, Seattle, WA USA
| | - Yang Liu
- Gangarosa Department of Environmental Health, Emory University, Rollins School of Public Health, Atlanta, GA USA
| | - Tabassum Z. Insaf
- New York State Department of Health, Albany, NY USA
- School of Public Health, University At Albany, Rensselaer, NY USA
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16
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Chen K, Breitner S, Wolf K, Stafoggia M, Sera F, Vicedo-Cabrera AM, Guo Y, Tong S, Lavigne E, Matus P, Valdés N, Kan H, Jaakkola JJK, Ryti NRI, Huber V, Scortichini M, Hashizume M, Honda Y, Nunes B, Madureira J, Holobâcă IH, Fratianni S, Kim H, Lee W, Tobias A, Íñiguez C, Forsberg B, Åström C, Ragettli MS, Guo YLL, Chen BY, Li S, Milojevic A, Zanobetti A, Schwartz J, Bell ML, Gasparrini A, Schneider A. Ambient carbon monoxide and daily mortality: a global time-series study in 337 cities. Lancet Planet Health 2021; 5:e191-e199. [PMID: 33838734 DOI: 10.1016/s2542-5196(21)00026-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2020] [Revised: 01/26/2021] [Accepted: 01/27/2021] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Epidemiological evidence on short-term association between ambient carbon monoxide (CO) and mortality is inconclusive and limited to single cities, regions, or countries. Generalisation of results from previous studies is hindered by potential publication bias and different modelling approaches. We therefore assessed the association between short-term exposure to ambient CO and daily mortality in a multicity, multicountry setting. METHODS We collected daily data on air pollution, meteorology, and total mortality from 337 cities in 18 countries or regions, covering various periods from 1979 to 2016. All included cities had at least 2 years of both CO and mortality data. We estimated city-specific associations using confounder-adjusted generalised additive models with a quasi-Poisson distribution, and then pooled the estimates, accounting for their statistical uncertainty, using a random-effects multilevel meta-analytical model. We also assessed the overall shape of the exposure-response curve and evaluated the possibility of a threshold below which health is not affected. FINDINGS Overall, a 1 mg/m3 increase in the average CO concentration of the previous day was associated with a 0·91% (95% CI 0·32-1·50) increase in daily total mortality. The pooled exposure-response curve showed a continuously elevated mortality risk with increasing CO concentrations, suggesting no threshold. The exposure-response curve was steeper at daily CO levels lower than 1 mg/m3, indicating greater risk of mortality per increment in CO exposure, and persisted at daily concentrations as low as 0·6 mg/m3 or less. The association remained similar after adjustment for ozone but was attenuated after adjustment for particulate matter or sulphur dioxide, or even reduced to null after adjustment for nitrogen dioxide. INTERPRETATION This international study is by far the largest epidemiological investigation on short-term CO-related mortality. We found significant associations between ambient CO and daily mortality, even at levels well below current air quality guidelines. Further studies are warranted to disentangle its independent effect from other traffic-related pollutants. FUNDING EU Horizon 2020, UK Medical Research Council, and Natural Environment Research Council.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kai Chen
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT, USA.
| | - Susanne Breitner
- Institute of Epidemiology, Helmholtz Zentrum München-German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany; Institute for Medical Information Processing, Biometry and Epidemiology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany
| | - Kathrin Wolf
- Institute of Epidemiology, Helmholtz Zentrum München-German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Massimo Stafoggia
- Department of Epidemiology, Lazio Regional Health Service, Rome, Italy
| | - Francesco Sera
- Department of Public Health, Environments and Society, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK; Department of Statistics, Computer Science and Applications "G. Parenti", University of Florence, Florence, Italy
| | - Ana M Vicedo-Cabrera
- Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland; Oeschger Center for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Yuming Guo
- Climate, Air Quality Research Unit, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
| | - Shilu Tong
- Shanghai Children's Medical Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China; School of Public Health, Institute of Environment and Population Health, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China; School of Public Health and Social Work, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, QLD, Australia; Center for Global Health, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Eric Lavigne
- Air Health Science Division, Health Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada; School of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada
| | - Patricia Matus
- Department of Public Health, Universidad de los Andes, Santiago, Chile
| | - Nicolás Valdés
- Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, Universidad de los Andes, Santiago, Chile
| | - Haidong Kan
- School of Public Health, Key Lab of Public Health Safety of the Ministry of Education and Key Lab of Health Technology Assessment of the Ministry of Health, Fudan University, Shanghai, China; Shanghai Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Particle Pollution and Prevention (LAP3), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Jouni J K Jaakkola
- Center for Environmental and Respiratory Health Research (CERH), University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland; Biocenter Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland; Finnish Meteorological Institute, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Niilo R I Ryti
- Center for Environmental and Respiratory Health Research (CERH), University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland; Biocenter Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Veronika Huber
- Department of Physical, Chemical and Natural Systems, Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Seville, Spain; Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Potsdam, Germany
| | | | - Masahiro Hashizume
- Department of Global Health Policy, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Yasushi Honda
- Faculty of Health and Sport Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Baltazar Nunes
- Department of Epidemiology, Instituto Nacional de Saúde Dr Ricardo Jorge, Lisbon, Portugal; Centro de Investigação em Saúde Pública, Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Joana Madureira
- Department of Enviromental Health, Instituto Nacional de Saúde Dr Ricardo Jorge, Porto, Portugal; EPIUnit - Instituto de Saúde Pública, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | | | - Simona Fratianni
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Torino, Turin, Italy
| | - Ho Kim
- Graduate School of Public Health, Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Whanhee Lee
- Graduate School of Public Health, Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Aurelio Tobias
- Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Research, Spanish Council for Scientific Research, Barcelona, Spain; School of Tropical Medicine and Global Health, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan
| | - Carmen Íñiguez
- Department of Statistics and Computational Research, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain; Ciberesp, Madrid, Spain
| | - Bertil Forsberg
- Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Christofer Åström
- Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Martina S Ragettli
- Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Basel, Switzerland; University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Yue-Liang Leon Guo
- Environmental and Occupational Medicine, National Taiwan University and NTU Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; National Institute of Environmental Health Science, National Health Research Institutes, Zhunan, Taiwan
| | - Bing-Yu Chen
- National Institute of Environmental Health Science, National Health Research Institutes, Zhunan, Taiwan
| | - Shanshan Li
- Climate, Air Quality Research Unit, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
| | - Ai Milojevic
- Department of Public Health, Environments and Society, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Antonella Zanobetti
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T H Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Joel Schwartz
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T H Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Michelle L Bell
- School of the Environment, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Antonio Gasparrini
- Department of Public Health, Environments and Society, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK; Centre for Statistical Methodology, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK; Centre on Climate Change and Planetary Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Alexandra Schneider
- Institute of Epidemiology, Helmholtz Zentrum München-German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany
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Goldberg DL, Anenberg SC, Kerr GH, Mohegh A, Lu Z, Streets DG. TROPOMI NO 2 in the United States: A Detailed Look at the Annual Averages, Weekly Cycles, Effects of Temperature, and Correlation With Surface NO 2 Concentrations. EARTH'S FUTURE 2021; 9:e2020EF001665. [PMID: 33869651 PMCID: PMC8047911 DOI: 10.1029/2020ef001665] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2020] [Revised: 01/10/2021] [Accepted: 02/10/2021] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
Observing the spatial heterogeneities of NO2 air pollution is an important first step in quantifying NOX emissions and exposures. This study investigates the capabilities of the Tropospheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) in observing the spatial and temporal patterns of NO2 pollution in the continental United States. The unprecedented sensitivity of the sensor can differentiate the fine-scale spatial heterogeneities in urban areas, such as emissions related to airport/shipping operations and high traffic, and the relatively small emission sources in rural areas, such as power plants and mining operations. We then examine NO2 columns by day-of-the-week and find that Saturday and Sunday concentrations are 16% and 24% lower respectively, than during weekdays. We also analyze the correlation of daily maximum 2-m temperatures and NO2 column amounts and find that NO2 is larger on the hottest days (>32°C) as compared to warm days (26°C-32°C), which is in contrast to a general decrease in NO2 with increasing temperature at moderate temperatures. Finally, we demonstrate that a linear regression fit of 2019 annual TROPOMI NO2 data to annual surface-level concentrations yields relatively strong correlation (R 2 = 0.66). These new developments make TROPOMI NO2 satellite data advantageous for policymakers and public health officials, who request information at high spatial resolution and short timescales, in order to assess, devise, and evaluate regulations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel L. Goldberg
- Department of Environmental and Occupational HealthGeorge Washington UniversityWashingtonDCUSA
- Energy Systems DivisionArgonne National LaboratoryArgonneILUSA
| | - Susan C. Anenberg
- Department of Environmental and Occupational HealthGeorge Washington UniversityWashingtonDCUSA
| | - Gaige Hunter Kerr
- Department of Environmental and Occupational HealthGeorge Washington UniversityWashingtonDCUSA
| | - Arash Mohegh
- Department of Environmental and Occupational HealthGeorge Washington UniversityWashingtonDCUSA
| | - Zifeng Lu
- Energy Systems DivisionArgonne National LaboratoryArgonneILUSA
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18
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Shin HH, Parajuli RP, Gogna P, Maquiling A, Dehghani P. Pollutant-sex specific differences in respiratory hospitalization and mortality risk attributable to short-term exposure to ambient air pollution. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2021; 755:143135. [PMID: 33168238 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.143135] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2020] [Revised: 09/11/2020] [Accepted: 10/13/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Many studies have reported associations of individual pollutants with respiratory hospitalization and mortality based on different populations, which makes it difficult to directly compare adverse health effects among multiple air pollutants. OBJECTIVES The study goal is to compare acute respiratory-related hospitalization and mortality associated with short-term exposure to three ambient air pollutants and analyze differences in health risks by season, age and sex. METHODS Hourly measurements of air pollutants (ozone, NO2, PM2.5) and temperature were collected from ground-monitors for 24 cities along with daily hospitalization (1996-2012) and mortality (1984-2012) data. National associations between air pollutant and health outcome were estimated for season (warm, cold vs. year-round), age (base ≥ 1, seniors > 65), and sex (females ≥ 1 and males ≥ 1) using Bayesian hierarchical models. RESULTS Overall, the three air pollutants were significantly associated with acute respiratory health outcomes at different lag-days. For respiratory hospitalization, the increased risks in percent changes with 95% posterior intervals for a 10-unit increase in each pollutant were: ozone (lag1, 0.7% (0.4, 0.9)), NO2 (lag0, 0.7% (0.1, 1.4)), and PM2.5 (lag1, 1.3% (0.7, 1.9)). For respiratory mortality: ozone (lag2, 1.2% (0.4, 1.9)), NO2 (lag1, 2.1% (0.6, 3.5)), and PM2.5 (lag1, 0.6% (-1.0, 2.2)). While some differences in risk were observed by season and age group, sex-specific differences were more pronounced. Compared with males, females had a higher respiratory mortality risk (1.8% (0.6, 2.9) vs 0.5% (-0.3, 1.3)) from ozone, a higher respiratory hospitalization risk (0.9% (0.0, 1.8) vs 0.6% (-0.3, 1.4)) but lower mortality risk (1.4% (-1.0, 3.7) vs 2.2% (0.4, 4.0)) from NO2, and a lower hospitalization risk (0.7% (-0.2, 1.7) vs 1.8% (1.0, 2.6)) from PM2.5. CONCLUSION This study reports significant health effects of short-term exposure to three ambient air pollutants on respiratory hospitalization (ozone≈NO2 < PM2.5 per-10 unit; ozone>NO2 ≈ PM2.5 per-IQR) and mortality (ozone≈NO2 > PM2.5) in Canada. Pollutant-sex-specific differences were found, but inconclusive due to limited biological and physiological explanations. Further studies are warranted to understand the pollutant-sex specific differences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hwashin Hyun Shin
- Environmental Health Science and Research Bureau, Health Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada; Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada.
| | | | - Priyanka Gogna
- Department of Public Health Sciences, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada.
| | - Aubrey Maquiling
- Environmental Health Science and Research Bureau, Health Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
| | - Parvin Dehghani
- Environmental Health Science and Research Bureau, Health Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
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19
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Mostafa MK, Gamal G, Wafiq A. The impact of COVID 19 on air pollution levels and other environmental indicators - A case study of Egypt. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2021. [PMID: 33069147 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/02/2023]
Abstract
The outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) not only affected health and economics, but also its effect extended to include other aspects, such as the environment. Using Egypt as a case study, this paper presents the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on air pollution levels by studying nitrogen dioxide (NO2), ozone (O3), particulate matter represented in absorbing aerosol index (AAI), carbon monoxide (CO), and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The paper also highlights the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on other environmental indicators including environmental noise, medical and municipal solid wastes. The paper presents the Egyptian COVID-19 story from its different angles including the development of confirmed COVID-19 cases, containment measures from the government, the impact on the country's economy and the national energy consumption so as to effectively evaluate the effect on both the air pollution levels and the other studied environmental indicators. For the other environmental indicators, a strong link was observed between COVID-19 lockdown and the reduction in environmental noise, beaches, surface and groundwater pollution. For environmental noise, this has been confirmed by officially governmental announcements which reported that the level of environmental noise in Egypt was reduced by about 75% during the lockdown period. On the other hand, there are some negative effects, including an increase in medical solid waste (from 70 to 300 ton/day), municipal solid waste, as well as a less efficient solid waste recycling process. For air pollution levels, the data were obtained from National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and European Space Agency satellite data sets. The data for the lockdown period in 2020 have been extracted and compared to the corresponding months in the selected baseline period (2015-2019) to identify the effect that the lockdown period had on the air pollution levels in Egypt with focus on Cairo and Alexandria governorates. It was found that the AAI decreased by about 30%, the NO2 decreased by 15 and 33% over Cairo and Alexandria governorates, respectively, and that the CO decreased by about 5% over both governorates. In addition, the GHG emissions in Egypt were reduced by at least 4% during the pandemic. In contrast, ozone levels increased by about 2% over Cairo and Alexandria governorates. It can be concluded that the implemented containment measures during COVID-19 pandemic had resulted in both positive and negative environmental impacts. The positive environmental impacts are not sustainable and deterioration on them is expected to occur after the lockdown as it was before the pandemic. Therefore, stricter laws must be enacted to protect the environment in Egypt.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohamed K Mostafa
- Faculty of Engineering and Technology, Badr University in Cairo (BUC), Cairo, Egypt.
| | - Gamil Gamal
- Department of Natural Resources, Faculty of African Postgraduate Studies, Cairo University, Egypt
| | - A Wafiq
- Chemical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Cairo University, Egypt
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20
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Mostafa MK, Gamal G, Wafiq A. The impact of COVID 19 on air pollution levels and other environmental indicators - A case study of Egypt. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2021; 277:111496. [PMID: 33069147 PMCID: PMC7547608 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2020.111496] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2020] [Revised: 09/17/2020] [Accepted: 10/07/2020] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
The outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) not only affected health and economics, but also its effect extended to include other aspects, such as the environment. Using Egypt as a case study, this paper presents the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on air pollution levels by studying nitrogen dioxide (NO2), ozone (O3), particulate matter represented in absorbing aerosol index (AAI), carbon monoxide (CO), and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The paper also highlights the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on other environmental indicators including environmental noise, medical and municipal solid wastes. The paper presents the Egyptian COVID-19 story from its different angles including the development of confirmed COVID-19 cases, containment measures from the government, the impact on the country's economy and the national energy consumption so as to effectively evaluate the effect on both the air pollution levels and the other studied environmental indicators. For the other environmental indicators, a strong link was observed between COVID-19 lockdown and the reduction in environmental noise, beaches, surface and groundwater pollution. For environmental noise, this has been confirmed by officially governmental announcements which reported that the level of environmental noise in Egypt was reduced by about 75% during the lockdown period. On the other hand, there are some negative effects, including an increase in medical solid waste (from 70 to 300 ton/day), municipal solid waste, as well as a less efficient solid waste recycling process. For air pollution levels, the data were obtained from National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and European Space Agency satellite data sets. The data for the lockdown period in 2020 have been extracted and compared to the corresponding months in the selected baseline period (2015-2019) to identify the effect that the lockdown period had on the air pollution levels in Egypt with focus on Cairo and Alexandria governorates. It was found that the AAI decreased by about 30%, the NO2 decreased by 15 and 33% over Cairo and Alexandria governorates, respectively, and that the CO decreased by about 5% over both governorates. In addition, the GHG emissions in Egypt were reduced by at least 4% during the pandemic. In contrast, ozone levels increased by about 2% over Cairo and Alexandria governorates. It can be concluded that the implemented containment measures during COVID-19 pandemic had resulted in both positive and negative environmental impacts. The positive environmental impacts are not sustainable and deterioration on them is expected to occur after the lockdown as it was before the pandemic. Therefore, stricter laws must be enacted to protect the environment in Egypt.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohamed K Mostafa
- Faculty of Engineering and Technology, Badr University in Cairo (BUC), Cairo, Egypt.
| | - Gamil Gamal
- Department of Natural Resources, Faculty of African Postgraduate Studies, Cairo University, Egypt
| | - A Wafiq
- Chemical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Cairo University, Egypt
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21
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Ren Q, Li S, Xiao C, Zhang J, Lin H, Wang S. The Impact of Air Pollution on Hospitalization for Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Disease in Shenyang, China. IRANIAN JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH 2020; 49:1476-1484. [PMID: 33083324 PMCID: PMC7554401 DOI: 10.18502/ijph.v49i8.3891] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the overall impact of PM2.5, PM10, NO2, SO2, CO, and O3 on the admission of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease. Methods: We collected data on cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease admissions from two hospitals in Shenyang Liaoning, China from Jan 2014 to Dec 2017, as well as daily measurements of six pollutants at 11 sites in Shenyang. The generalized additive model was used to assess the association between daily contaminants and admission to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease. Results: The single-contamination model showed a significant correlation between NO2, O3, PM10 and cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases at lag0 day. Air pollutants had lag effects on different gender groups. Excess relative risks (ERs) associated with a 10 μg/m3 increase were 1.522(1.057, 1.988) on lag02 for NO2, 0.547% (0.367%, 0.728%), 0.133% (0.061%, 0.205%) on lag3 for O3 and PM10. The dual pollutant model showed that the effects of NO2, O3, and PM10 after adjusting the influence of other pollutants were still statistically significant. Conclusion: Short-term exposure to ambient air pollution (NO2, O3, and PM10) may be associated with an increased risk of daily cardiovascular and cerebrovascular admission, which may provide reliable evidence for further understanding of the potential adverse effects of air pollution on cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qingquan Ren
- Department of Labor and Environmental Hygiene, Shenyang Medical College, Liaoning 110034, P.R. China.,Key Laboratory of Environmental Pollution and Microecology of Liaoning Province, Shenyang Medical College, Shenyang, Liaoning 110034, P.R. China
| | - Shuyin Li
- Key Laboratory of Environmental Pollution and Microecology of Liaoning Province, Shenyang Medical College, Shenyang, Liaoning 110034, P.R. China.,Department of Pathogenic Biology, Shenyang Medical College, Shenyang, Liaoning 110034, P.R. China
| | - Chunling Xiao
- Key Laboratory of Environmental Pollution and Microecology of Liaoning Province, Shenyang Medical College, Shenyang, Liaoning 110034, P.R. China.,Department of Pathogenic Biology, Shenyang Medical College, Shenyang, Liaoning 110034, P.R. China
| | - Jiazhi Zhang
- Shenyang Environmental Monitoring Center Station, Shenyang, Liaoning 110016, P.R. China
| | - Hong Lin
- Shenyang Environmental Monitoring Center Station, Shenyang, Liaoning 110016, P.R. China
| | - Shuai Wang
- Shenyang Environmental Monitoring Center Station, Shenyang, Liaoning 110016, P.R. China
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22
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Otmani A, Benchrif A, Tahri M, Bounakhla M, Chakir EM, El Bouch M, Krombi M. Impact of Covid-19 lockdown on PM 10, SO 2 and NO 2 concentrations in Salé City (Morocco). THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2020; 735:139541. [PMID: 32445829 PMCID: PMC7235599 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.139541] [Citation(s) in RCA: 89] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2020] [Revised: 05/15/2020] [Accepted: 05/17/2020] [Indexed: 04/13/2023]
Abstract
Covid-19 was first reported in Morocco on March 2, 2020. Since then, to prevent its propagation, the Moroccan government declared a state of health emergency. A set of rapid and strict countermeasures have taken, including locking down cities, limiting population's mobility and prohibiting almost all avoidable activities. In the present study, we attempted to evaluate the changes in levels of some air pollutants (mainly PM10, NO2 and SO2) in Salé city (North-Western Morocco) during the lockdown measures. In this context, a continuous measurement of PM10, SO2 and NO2 was carried before and during the Covid-19 lockdown period. As a consequence of the security measures and control actions undertaken, the emissions from vehicle exhaust and industrial production were significantly reduced, which contribute to the decrease in the concentrations of the studied pollutants. The obtained results showed that the difference between the concentrations recorded before and during the lockdown period were respectively 75%, 49% and 96% for PM10, SO2 and NO2. PM10 levels were much less reduced than NO2. The three-dimensional air mass backward trajectories, using the HYSPLIT model, demonstrated the benefits of PM10 local emission reductions related to the lockdown were overwhelmed by the contribution of long-range transported aerosols outside areas. In addition, noteworthy differences in the air mass back trajectories and the meteorology between these two periods were evidenced.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anas Otmani
- Faculty of Sciences, Ibn Tofail University, Kenitra, Morocco; Laboratoire National des Études et de Surveillance de la Pollution (LNESP), Morocco
| | | | - Mounia Tahri
- National Centre for Nuclear Energy, Science and Technology (CNESTEN), Morocco
| | - Moussa Bounakhla
- National Centre for Nuclear Energy, Science and Technology (CNESTEN), Morocco
| | | | - Mohammed El Bouch
- Laboratoire National des Études et de Surveillance de la Pollution (LNESP), Morocco
| | - M'hamed Krombi
- Direction Régionale de la Culture, Ministère de la Culture, Morocco
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23
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Demetillo MAG, Navarro A, Knowles KK, Fields KP, Geddes JA, Nowlan CR, Janz SJ, Judd LM, Al-Saadi J, Sun K, McDonald BC, Diskin GS, Pusede SE. Observing Nitrogen Dioxide Air Pollution Inequality Using High-Spatial-Resolution Remote Sensing Measurements in Houston, Texas. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2020; 54:9882-9895. [PMID: 32806912 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.0c01864] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
Houston, Texas is a major U.S. urban and industrial area where poor air quality is unevenly distributed and a disproportionate share is located in low-income, non-white, and Hispanic neighborhoods. We have traditionally lacked city-wide observations to fully describe these spatial heterogeneities in Houston and in cities globally, especially for reactive gases like nitrogen dioxide (NO2). Here, we analyze novel high-spatial-resolution (250 m × 500 m) NO2 vertical columns measured by the NASA GCAS airborne spectrometer as part of the September-2013 NASA DISCOVER-AQ mission and discuss differences in population-weighted NO2 at the census-tract level. Based on the average of 35 repeated flight circuits, we find 37 ± 6% higher NO2 for non-whites and Hispanics living in low-income tracts (LIN) compared to whites living in high-income tracts (HIW) and report NO2 disparities separately by race ethnicity (11-32%) and poverty status (15-28%). We observe substantial time-of-day and day-to-day variability in LIN-HIW NO2 differences (and in other metrics) driven by the greater prevalence of NOx (≡NO + NO2) emission sources in low-income, non-white, and Hispanic neighborhoods. We evaluate measurements from the recently launched satellite sensor TROPOMI (3.5 km × 7 km at nadir), averaged to 0.01° × 0.01° using physics-based oversampling, and demonstrate that TROPOMI resolves similar relative, but not absolute, tract-level differences compared to GCAS. We utilize the high-resolution FIVE and NEI NOx inventories, plus one year of TROPOMI weekday-weekend variability, to attribute tract-level NO2 disparities to industrial sources and heavy-duty diesel trucking. We show that GCAS and TROPOMI spatial patterns correspond to the surface patterns measured using aircraft profiling and surface monitors. We discuss opportunities for satellite remote sensing to inform decision making in cities generally.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mary Angelique G Demetillo
- Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
| | - Aracely Navarro
- Department of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, United States
| | - Katherine K Knowles
- Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
| | - Kimberly P Fields
- Carter G. Woodson Institute for African-American and African Studies, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
| | - Jeffrey A Geddes
- Department of Earth and Environment, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United States
| | - Caroline R Nowlan
- Atomic and Molecular Physics Division, Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, United States
| | - Scott J Janz
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland 20771, United States
| | - Laura M Judd
- NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia 23681, United States
| | - Jassim Al-Saadi
- NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia 23681, United States
| | - Kang Sun
- Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York 14260, United States
- Research and Education in eNergy, Environment and Water (RENEW) Institute, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York 14260, United States
| | - Brian C McDonald
- Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80305, United States
- Chemical Sciences Division, NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory, Boulder, Colorado 80305, United States
| | - Glenn S Diskin
- NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia 23681, United States
| | - Sally E Pusede
- Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
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24
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Shin HH, Parajuli RP, Maquiling A, Smith-Doiron M. Temporal trends in associations between ozone and circulatory mortality in age and sex in Canada during 1984-2012. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2020; 724:137944. [PMID: 32408420 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.137944] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2019] [Revised: 03/13/2020] [Accepted: 03/13/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Considerable research has been conducted on the association between ground-level ozone (ozone) and various causes of mortality, but the relationships by age and sex (biological) have been inconsistent, and temporal trends remain unexplored. OBJECTIVES The study goals are to investigate the adverse health effects of short-term exposure to ozone on circulatory mortality by age and sex, and to examine trends in annual health effects. METHODS Daily ozone, temperature, and circulatory mortality counts (ICD I00-I99) were collected for 24 urban cities for 29 years (1984-2012). Associations between ozone and circulatory mortality were estimated using generalized additive Poisson models for season (warm vs. cold), age [base (≥1) vs. seniors (>65)], and sex, accounting for confounders (calendar-time, temperature, day of the week). City-specific estimates were pooled to represent national associations through Bayesian hierarchical models. RESULTS While the cold season returned insignificant estimates, the warm season showed statistically significant associations: a 10 ppb increase in ozone was associated with 0.7% increase in circulatory mortality with a 95% posterior interval of 0.2%, 1.1%. One-day lagged ozone in the warm season showed little age differences [0.7% (0.23%, 1.12%) vs. 0.8% (0.22%, 1.27%)], but visible sex differences: females were at a higher circulatory mortality risk than males [1.1% (0.31%, 1.71%) vs. 0.3% (-0.46%, 0.98%)]. Annual estimates suggest overall up-down temporal changes; a slightly increasing trend until 2002-2004, and a generally decreasing trend thereafter. CONCLUSION This study found noticeable sex-related differences in circulatory mortality attributable to short-term exposure to ozone. Further research is warranted to understand whether sex alone, or unknown interactions with other factors derived the differences, and to clarify the specific biological mechanisms underlying differences in risk estimates between females and males.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hwashin Hyun Shin
- Environmental Health Science and Research Bureau, Health Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada; Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada.
| | | | - Aubrey Maquiling
- Environmental Health Science and Research Bureau, Health Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
| | - Marc Smith-Doiron
- Environmental Health Science and Research Bureau, Health Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
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25
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He MZ, Kinney PL, Li T, Chen C, Sun Q, Ban J, Wang J, Liu S, Goldsmith J, Kioumourtzoglou MA. Short- and intermediate-term exposure to NO 2 and mortality: A multi-county analysis in China. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2020; 261:114165. [PMID: 32097792 PMCID: PMC7220820 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2020.114165] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2019] [Revised: 02/07/2020] [Accepted: 02/10/2020] [Indexed: 05/18/2023]
Abstract
Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) is a well-established traffic emissions tracer and has been associated with multiple adverse health outcomes. Short- and long-term exposure to NO2 has been studied and is well-documented in existing literature, but information on intermediate-term NO2 effects and mortality is lacking, despite biological plausibility. We obtained daily NO2 and mortality data from 42 counties in China from 2013 to 2015. Distributed-lag non-linear models were employed to investigate the relationship between non-accidental mortality and NO2 up to 30 days before the event, including PM2.5, temperature, relative humidity, and holidays as covariates in a random effects meta-analysis pooling county-specific estimates. We repeated the analysis for cardiovascular- and respiratory-related mortality, and explored sex-stratified associations. Per 10 μg/m3 increase in NO2, we estimated a 0.13% (95%CI: 0.03, 0.23%), 0.57% (95%CI: -0.04, 1.18%), and -0.14% (95%CI: -1.63, 1.37%) change in non-accidental mortality for same-day and previous-day NO2 (lag0-1 cumulated), in the preceding 7 days (lag0-7 cumulated), and in the preceding 30 days (lag0-30 cumulated), respectively. The strongest estimate was observed for respiratory-related mortality in the lag0-30 cumulated effect for women (3.12%; 95%CI: -1.66, 8.13%). We observed a trend of higher effect estimates of intermediate-term NO2 exposure on respiratory mortality compared to that of the short-term, although the differences were not statistically significant. Our results at longer lags for all-cause and cardiovascular mortality were sensitive to modeling choices. Future work should further investigate intermediate-term air pollution exposure given their potential biological relevance, but in larger scale settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mike Z He
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, 722 West 168th Street, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Patrick L Kinney
- Department of Environmental Health, Boston University School of Public Health, 715 Albany Street, Talbot 4W, Boston, MA, 02118, USA
| | - Tiantian Li
- National Institute of Environmental Health, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, No. 7 Panjiayuan Nanli, Chaoyang District, Beijing, 100021, China.
| | - Chen Chen
- National Institute of Environmental Health, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, No. 7 Panjiayuan Nanli, Chaoyang District, Beijing, 100021, China
| | - Qinghua Sun
- National Institute of Environmental Health, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, No. 7 Panjiayuan Nanli, Chaoyang District, Beijing, 100021, China
| | - Jie Ban
- National Institute of Environmental Health, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, No. 7 Panjiayuan Nanli, Chaoyang District, Beijing, 100021, China
| | - Jiaonan Wang
- National Institute of Environmental Health, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, No. 7 Panjiayuan Nanli, Chaoyang District, Beijing, 100021, China
| | - Siliang Liu
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, 722 West 168th Street, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Jeff Goldsmith
- Department of Biostatistics, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, 722 West 168th Street, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Marianthi-Anna Kioumourtzoglou
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, 722 West 168th Street, New York, NY, 10032, USA
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26
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Yan W, Yue H, Ji X, Li G, Sang N. Prenatal NO 2 exposure and neurodevelopmental disorders in offspring mice: Transcriptomics reveals sex-dependent changes in cerebral gene expression. ENVIRONMENT INTERNATIONAL 2020; 138:105659. [PMID: 32203807 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2020.105659] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2019] [Revised: 03/05/2020] [Accepted: 03/10/2020] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Early-life exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO2) is associated with an increased risk of developing a neurodevelopmental disorder during childhood or later in life. OBJECTIVES We investigated whether prenatal NO2 inhalation causes neurodevelopmental abnormalities and cognitive deficits in weanling offspring without subsequent postnatal NO2 exposure and how this prenatal exposure contributes to postnatal consequences. METHODS Pregnant C57BL/6 mice were exposed to air or NO2 (2.5 ppm, 5 h/day) throughout gestation, and the offspring were sacrificed on postnatal days (PNDs) 1, 7, 14 and 21. We determined the mRNA profiles of different postnatal developmental windows, detected the long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) profiles and cognitive function in weanling offspring, and analyzed the effects of hub lncRNAs on differentially expressed genes (DEGs). RESULTS Prenatal NO2 inhalation significantly impaired cognitive function in the weanling male, but not female, offspring. The male-specific response was coupled with abnormal neuropathologies and transcriptional profiles in the cortex during different postnatal developmental windows. Consistently, Gene Ontology (GO) analysis of the DEGs revealed persistent disruptions in neurodevelopment-associated biological processes and cellular components in the male offspring, and Apolipoprotein E (ApoE) was one of key factors contributing to prenatal exposure-induced male-specific neurological dysfunction. In addition, distinct sex-dependent lncRNA expression was identified in the weanling offspring, and metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 (Malat1) acted as a hub lncRNA and was coexpressed with most coding genes in the lncRNA-mRNA coexpressed pairs in the male offspring. Importantly, lncRNA Malat1 expression was elevated, and Malat1 modulated ApoE expression through NF-κB activation during this process. CONCLUSIONS Prenatal NO2 exposure is related to sex-dependent neurocognitive deficits and transcriptomic profile changes in the cortices of the prenatally exposed offspring. Male-specific neurological dysfunction is associated with the constant alteration of genes during postnatal neurodevelopment and their transcriptional modulation by hub lncRNAs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Yan
- College of Environment and Resource, Research Center of Environment and Health, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, Shanxi 030006, China
| | - Huifeng Yue
- College of Environment and Resource, Research Center of Environment and Health, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, Shanxi 030006, China
| | - Xiaotong Ji
- College of Environment and Resource, Research Center of Environment and Health, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, Shanxi 030006, China
| | - Guangke Li
- College of Environment and Resource, Research Center of Environment and Health, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, Shanxi 030006, China
| | - Nan Sang
- College of Environment and Resource, Research Center of Environment and Health, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, Shanxi 030006, China.
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On Aerosol Liquid Water and Sulfate Associations: The Potential for Fine Particulate Matter Biases. ATMOSPHERE 2020. [DOI: 10.3390/atmos11020194] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
In humid locations of the Eastern U.S., sulfate is a surrogate for aerosol liquid water (ALW), a poorly measured particle constituent. Regional and seasonal variation in ALW–sulfate relationships offers a potential explanation to reconcile epidemiology and toxicology studies regarding particulate sulfur and health endpoints. ALW facilitates transfer of polar species from the gas phase to the particle phase and affects particle pH and metal oxidation state. Though abundant and a potential indicator of adverse health endpoints, ALW is largely removed in most particulate matter measurement techniques, including in routine particulate matter (PM2.5) networks that use federal reference method (FRM) monitors, which are used in epidemiology studies. We find that in 2004, a typical year in the available record, ambient ALW mass is removed during sampling and filter equilibration to standard laboratory conditions at most (94%) sites, up to 85% of the ambient water mass. The removal of ALW can induce the evaporation of other semi-volatile compounds present in PM2.5, such as ammonium nitrate and numerous organics. This produces an artifact in the PM mass measurements that is, importantly, not uniform in space or time. This suggests that PM2.5 epidemiology studies that exclude ALW are biased. This work provides a plausible explanation to resolve multi-decade discrepancies regarding ambient sulfate and health impacts in some epidemiological and toxicological studies.
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Grewling Ł, Bogawski P, Kryza M, Magyar D, Šikoparija B, Skjøth CA, Udvardy O, Werner M, Smith M. Concomitant occurrence of anthropogenic air pollutants, mineral dust and fungal spores during long-distance transport of ragweed pollen. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2019; 254:112948. [PMID: 31377333 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2019.07.116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2019] [Revised: 07/17/2019] [Accepted: 07/22/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Large-scale synoptic conditions are able to transport considerable amounts of airborne particles over entire continents by creating substantial air mass movement. This phenomenon is observed in Europe in relation to highly allergenic ragweed (Ambrosia L.) pollen grains that are transported from populations in Central Europe (mainly the Pannonian Plain and Balkans) to the North. The path taken by atmospheric ragweed pollen often passes through the highly industrialised mining region of Silesia in Southern Poland, considered to be one of the most polluted areas in the EU. It is hypothesized that chemical air pollutants released over Silesia could become mixed with biological material and be transported to less polluted regions further North. We analysed levels of air pollution during episodes of long-distance transport (LDT) of ragweed pollen to Poland. Results show that, concomitantly with pollen, the concentration of air pollutants with potential health-risk, i.e. SO2, and PM10, have also significantly increased (by 104% and 37%, respectively) in the receptor area (Western Poland). Chemical transport modelling (EMEP) and air mass back-trajectory analysis (HYSPLIT) showed that potential sources of PM10 include Silesia, as well as mineral dust from the Ukrainian steppe and the Sahara Desert. In addition, atmospheric concentrations of other allergenic biological particles, i.e. Alternaria Nees ex Fr. spores, also increased markedly (by 115%) during LDT episodes. We suggest that the LDT episodes of ragweed pollen over Europe are not a "one-component" phenomenon, but are often related to elevated levels of chemical air pollutants and other biotic and abiotic components (fungal spores and desert dust).
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Affiliation(s)
- Łukasz Grewling
- Laboratory of Aeropalynology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Uniwersytetu Poznańskiego 6, 61-489 Poznań, Poland.
| | - Paweł Bogawski
- Laboratory of Biological Spatial Information, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Uniwersytetu Poznańskiego 6, 61-489 Poznań, Poland
| | - Maciej Kryza
- Department of Climatology and Atmosphere Protection, University of Wroclaw, Wroclaw, Poland
| | - Donat Magyar
- Department of Air Hygiene and Aerobiology, National Public Health Institute, Hungary
| | - Branko Šikoparija
- BioSense Institute - Research Institute for Information Technologies in Biosystems, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia
| | - Carsten Ambelas Skjøth
- School of Science and the Environment, University of Worcester, Henwick Grove, WR2 6AJ, Worcester, United Kingdom
| | - Orsolya Udvardy
- Department of Air Hygiene and Aerobiology, National Public Health Institute, Hungary
| | - Małgorzata Werner
- Department of Climatology and Atmosphere Protection, University of Wroclaw, Wroclaw, Poland
| | - Matt Smith
- School of Science and the Environment, University of Worcester, Henwick Grove, WR2 6AJ, Worcester, United Kingdom
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Wu R, Song X, Chen D, Zhong L, Huang X, Bai Y, Hu W, Ye S, Xu H, Feng B, Wang T, Zhu Y, Fang J, Liu S, Chen J, Wang X, Zhang Y, Huang W. Health benefit of air quality improvement in Guangzhou, China: Results from a long time-series analysis (2006-2016). ENVIRONMENT INTERNATIONAL 2019; 126:552-559. [PMID: 30852442 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2019.02.064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2018] [Revised: 02/25/2019] [Accepted: 02/25/2019] [Indexed: 05/22/2023]
Abstract
Numerous epidemiologic studies on adverse health effects of air pollution have been well documented; however, assessment on health benefits of air quality improvement from air pollution control measures has been limited in developing countries. We assessed the mortality benefits associated with air pollution improvement over 11 years in Guangzhou, China (2006-2016). A time series analysis with Generalized additive Poisson models was used to estimate mortality effects of ozone (O3) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2), adjusting for time trend, day of week, public holiday, temperature and relative humidity. We further estimated the changes in mortality burden of O3 and NO2, including attributable fraction (AF, in %) and attributable mortality (AM, in number of death) during study period. We lastly estimated mortality effects during the 2010 Asian Games (November 12 to December 18, 2010) compared to a baseline period consisting of 4-week before and 4-week after the game. During the study period, average annual concentrations of NO2 decreased from 42.3 μg/m3 in 2006 to 33.8 μg/m3 in 2016; while O3 levels remained stable over time. We observed significant increases in mortality of O3 and NO2, with approximately linear exposure-response relationships. In specific, each increase of 10 μg/m3 in O3 and NO2 at 2 prior days was associated with increases of 0.60% (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.47, 0.74) and 1.89% (95%CI: 1.49, 2.29) in total mortality, respectively. We further estimated that AF on total mortality attributed to NO2 decreased from 1.38% (95%CI: 1.09, 1.68) in 2006-2010 to 0.43% (95%CI: 0.34, 0.52) in 2011-2016, corresponding to AM on total mortality of 2496 deaths (95%CI: 1964, 3033) to 1073 deaths (95%CI: 846, 1301). During the 2010 Asian Games, we observed decrease in total mortality of 9.3% (95%CI: -15.0, -3.2) in comparison with that observed in the baseline period. Similar mortality benefits in cardiovascular diseases were also observed. Our results showed reduced mortality burden from air pollution improvement in Guangzhou in recent years, which provide strong rationale for continuing to reduce air pollution through comprehensive and rigorous air quality management in the area.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rongshan Wu
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Peking University School of Public Health, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Sciences of Ministry of Education, Peking University Institute of Environmental Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Xiaoming Song
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Peking University School of Public Health, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Sciences of Ministry of Education, Peking University Institute of Environmental Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Duohong Chen
- Environmental Monitoring Center of Guangdong Province, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Liuju Zhong
- Guangdong Polytechnic of Environmental Protection Engineering, Foshan, Guangdong Province, China.
| | - Xiaoliang Huang
- Government Affairs Service Center of Health Department of Guangdong Province, China
| | - Yingchen Bai
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Wei Hu
- Government Affairs Service Center of Health Department of Guangdong Province, China
| | - Siqi Ye
- Environmental Monitoring Center of Guangdong Province, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Hongbing Xu
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Peking University School of Public Health, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Sciences of Ministry of Education, Peking University Institute of Environmental Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Baihuan Feng
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Peking University School of Public Health, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Sciences of Ministry of Education, Peking University Institute of Environmental Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Tong Wang
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Peking University School of Public Health, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Sciences of Ministry of Education, Peking University Institute of Environmental Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Yutong Zhu
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Peking University School of Public Health, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Sciences of Ministry of Education, Peking University Institute of Environmental Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Jiakun Fang
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Peking University School of Public Health, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Sciences of Ministry of Education, Peking University Institute of Environmental Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Shuo Liu
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Peking University School of Public Health, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Sciences of Ministry of Education, Peking University Institute of Environmental Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Jie Chen
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Peking University School of Public Health, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Sciences of Ministry of Education, Peking University Institute of Environmental Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Xuemei Wang
- Institute for Environmental and Climate Research, Jinan University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Yuanhang Zhang
- Department of Environmental Sciences, Peking University College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Beijing, China
| | - Wei Huang
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Peking University School of Public Health, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Sciences of Ministry of Education, Peking University Institute of Environmental Medicine, Beijing, China.
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Wu R, Zhong L, Huang X, Xu H, Liu S, Feng B, Wang T, Song X, Bai Y, Wu F, Wang X, Huang W. Temporal variations in ambient particulate matter reduction associated short-term mortality risks in Guangzhou, China: A time-series analysis (2006-2016). THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2018; 645:491-498. [PMID: 30029124 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.07.091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2018] [Revised: 07/06/2018] [Accepted: 07/07/2018] [Indexed: 05/22/2023]
Abstract
Numerous studies have reported associations between ambient particulate matter (PM) and daily mortality; however, little is known about temporal variations in ambient air pollution associated mortality risks, particularly in developing countries with limited long time-series air monitoring data. In present study, we assessed the associations and temporal relationships between ambient PM and daily mortality in Guangzhou, China, during 2006-2016. With this unique 11-year dataset, we related daily concentrations of PM with aerodynamic diameter < 2.5 μm (PM2.5), between 2.5 and 10 μm (PM10-2.5) and <10 μm (PM10) to daily mortality in Guangzhou. We applied overdispersed Poisson regression with adjustment for time trend and potential confounding factors. Multiple level sensitivity analyses were conducted to examine the robustness of main results. Between 2006 and 2016, annual concentrations of PM2.5 decreased by 50.8% to 27.0 μg/m3, of PM10-2.5 by 27.6% to 16.2 μg/m3, and of PM10 by 44.1% to 43.3 μg/m3 in Guangzhou. In this study, per 10 μg/m3 increases in mean concentrations at current day and 6 prior days of death (lag06), we observed increases in total mortality risks of 0.55% (95% Confidence Interval (CI): 0.24%, 0.86%) for PM2.5, 0.99% (95%CI: 0.48%, 1.50%) for PM10-2.5, and 0.44% (95%CI: 0.22%, 0.65%) for PM10. Stronger associations were observed for ambient PM on cardio-respiratory mortality and people at age ≥ 65 years. Despite drastic reductions in annual PM levels, PM2.5 associated cardiovascular and respiratory mortality risks remained significant at 1.26% (95%CI: 0.19%, 2.35%) and 1.91% (95%CI: 0.25%, 3.60%) during 2014-2016. Further, PM2.5 and PM10 associated respiratory mortality risks showed increasing trend over time (p-value = 0.03 for PM2.5). In summary, though ambient PM levels decreased substantially in Guangzhou in recent years, PM2.5 and PM10 associated cardio-respiratory mortality risks remained significant and respiratory mortality risks even increased. Our findings provide strong rationale for continuation of ambient air pollution control effort for public health protection in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rongshan Wu
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Peking University School of Public Health, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Sciences of Ministry of Education, Peking University Institute of Environmental Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Liuju Zhong
- Guangdong Polytechnic of Environmental Protection Engineering, Foshan, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Xiaoliang Huang
- Government Affairs Service Center of Health Department of Guangdong Province, China
| | - Hongbing Xu
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Peking University School of Public Health, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Sciences of Ministry of Education, Peking University Institute of Environmental Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Shuo Liu
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Peking University School of Public Health, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Sciences of Ministry of Education, Peking University Institute of Environmental Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Baihuan Feng
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Peking University School of Public Health, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Sciences of Ministry of Education, Peking University Institute of Environmental Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Tong Wang
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Peking University School of Public Health, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Sciences of Ministry of Education, Peking University Institute of Environmental Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Xiaoming Song
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Peking University School of Public Health, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Sciences of Ministry of Education, Peking University Institute of Environmental Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Yingchen Bai
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Fengchang Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Xuemei Wang
- Institute for Environmental and Climate Research, Jinan University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China.
| | - Wei Huang
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Peking University School of Public Health, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Cardiovascular Sciences of Ministry of Education, Peking University Institute of Environmental Medicine, Beijing, China.
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Linares C, Falcón I, Ortiz C, Díaz J. An approach estimating the short-term effect of NO 2 on daily mortality in Spanish cities. ENVIRONMENT INTERNATIONAL 2018; 116:18-28. [PMID: 29635093 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2018.04.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2018] [Revised: 04/02/2018] [Accepted: 04/02/2018] [Indexed: 05/18/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Road traffic is the most significant source of urban air pollution. PM2.5 is the air pollutant whose health effects have been most closely studied, and is the variable most commonly used as a proxy indicator of exposure to air pollution, whereas evidence on NO2 concentrations per se is still under study. In the case of Spain, there are no specific updated studies which calculate short-term NO2-related mortality. OBJECTIVE To quantify the relative risks (RRs) and attributable risks (ARs) of daily mortality associated with NO2 concentrations recorded in Spain across the study period, 2000-2009; and to calculate the number of NO2-related deaths. MATERIAL AND METHODS We calculated daily mortality due to natural causes (ICD-10: A00 R99), circulatory causes (ICD-10: I00 I99) and respiratory causes (ICD-10: J00 J99) for each province across the period 2000-2009, using data supplied by the National Statistics Institute. Mean daily NO2 concentrations in μg/m3 for each provincial capital were furnished by the Ministry of Agriculture & Environment, along with the equivalent figures for the control pollutants (PM10). To estimate RRs and ARs, we used generalised linear models with a Poisson link, controlling for maximum and minimum daily temperature, trend of the series, seasonalities, and the autoregressive nature of the series. A meta-analysis with random effects was used to estimate RRs and ARs nationwide. RESULTS The overall RRs obtained for Spain, corresponding to increases of 10 μg/m3 in NO2 concentrations were 1.012 (95% CI: 1.010 1.014) for natural-cause mortality, 1.028 (95% CI: 1.019 1.037) for respiratory-cause mortality, and 1.016 (95% CI: 1.012 1.021) for circulatory-cause mortality. This amounted to an annual overall 6085 deaths (95% CI: 3288 9427) due to natural causes, 1031 (95% CI: 466 1585) due to respiratory causes, and 1978 (95% CI: 828 3197) due to circulatory causes. CONCLUSION By virtue of the number of cities involved and the nature of the analysis performed, with quantification of the RRs and ARs of the short-term impact of NO2 on daily mortality in Spain, this study provides an updated estimate of the effect had by this type of pollutant on causes of mortality, and constitutes an important basis for reinforcing public health measures at a national level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cristina Linares
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, National School of Public Health, Carlos III Institute of Health, Madrid, Spain.
| | - Isabel Falcón
- Hospital Universitario Nuestra Señora de Candelaria, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
| | - Cristina Ortiz
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, National School of Public Health, Carlos III Institute of Health, Madrid, Spain
| | - Julio Díaz
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, National School of Public Health, Carlos III Institute of Health, Madrid, Spain
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Li T, Yan M, Sun Q, Anderson GB. Mortality risks from a spectrum of causes associated with wide-ranging exposure to fine particulate matter: A case-crossover study in Beijing, China. ENVIRONMENT INTERNATIONAL 2018; 111:52-59. [PMID: 29174689 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2017.10.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2017] [Revised: 10/12/2017] [Accepted: 10/27/2017] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Exposure to fine particulate matter (≤2.5μm in aerodynamic diameter; PM2.5) has been shown to be associated with an increased risk of mortality due to cardiovascular, respiratory, and other pulmonary diseases. However, fewer studies have investigated the relationship between ambient PM2.5 and human mortality for a wider range of causes of death, or for more specific causes of death within these broader categories, especially at the high PM2.5 concentrations currently experienced in Chinese megacities. Beijing, China, has a very large population and a wide range of PM2.5 exposures, allowing a prime opportunity to estimate such risks across a broad spectrum of causes, including rarer causes of death. OBJECTIVE To estimate the relative risk of cause-specific mortality associated with PM2.5 for a spectrum of causes of death, as well as characterize the time course of cause-specific mortality following PM2.5 exposure, in a location where PM2.5 concentrations are representative of common exposures in Chinese megacities. METHODS We collected daily data on mortality counts of Beijing residents and Beijing weather and air pollution measurements for January 1, 2009 to December 31, 2012. We used a time-stratified case-crossover study design to estimate the association between ambient PM2.5 concentrations and risk of death from several broad causes of death and from more refined specific causes within these broader categories. Primary results were estimated for risks the day of and the day following exposure (lag 0-1), but the time pattern of associated risk was also explored up to seven days following exposure. RESULTS Increased concentrations of PM2.5 were associated with increased risks at lag days 0-1 of all-cause mortality (0.26% increase per 10μg/m3; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.12%-0.39%), non-accidental deaths (0.25%; 95% CI: 0.11%-0.38%), circulatory deaths (0.39%; 95% CI: 0.21%-0.59%), respiratory deaths (0.43%; 95% CI: 0.05%-0.81%), intentional self-harm deaths (1.94%; 95% CI: 0.19%-3.73%) and nervous system deaths (0.9%; 95% CI: -0.2%-2%), although the observed increase was not statistical significant for the final one rarer cause of death. In addition to these five broad death outcomes, risk also increased following PM2.5 exposure at lag days 0-1 for deaths from several specific causes, including most of the specific circulatory causes considered. The largest observed increased risk by far was for one of the rarest causes of death considered, extrapyramidal and movement disorders (2.35%; 95% CI: 0.03%-4.72%). CONCLUSIONS This study indicates that exposure to PM2.5 in a study location more representative of exposures in developing cities is associated with an increased risk of mortality from broad range of causes of death, including some causes rarely studied previously in association with PM2.5 exposure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tiantian Li
- National Institute of Environmental Health, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, No.7 PanjiayuanNanli, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100021, China.
| | - Meilin Yan
- Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523-1681, USA
| | - Qinghua Sun
- National Institute of Environmental Health, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, No.7 PanjiayuanNanli, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100021, China
| | - G Brooke Anderson
- Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523-1681, USA
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Achilleos S, Kioumourtzoglou MA, Wu CD, Schwartz JD, Koutrakis P, Papatheodorou SI. Acute effects of fine particulate matter constituents on mortality: A systematic review and meta-regression analysis. ENVIRONMENT INTERNATIONAL 2017; 109:89-100. [PMID: 28988023 PMCID: PMC5689473 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2017.09.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 175] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2016] [Revised: 09/01/2017] [Accepted: 09/09/2017] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The link between PM2.5 exposure and adverse health outcomes is well documented from studies across the world. However, the reported effect estimates vary across studies, locations and constituents. We aimed to conduct a meta-analysis on associations between short-term exposure to PM2.5 constituents and mortality using city-specific estimates, and explore factors that may explain some of the observed heterogeneity. METHODS We systematically reviewed epidemiological studies on particle constituents and mortality using PubMed and Web of Science databases up to July 2015.We included studies that examined the association between short-term exposure to PM2.5 constituents and all-cause, cardiovascular, and respiratory mortality, in the general adult population. Each study was summarized based on pre-specified study key parameters (e.g., location, time period, population, diagnostic classification standard), and we evaluated the risk of bias using the Office of Health Assessment and Translation (OHAT) Method for each included study. We extracted city-specific mortality risk estimates for each constituent and cause of mortality. For multi-city studies, we requested the city-specific risk estimates from the authors unless reported in the article. We performed random effects meta-analyses using city-specific estimates, and examined whether the effects vary across regions and city characteristics (PM2.5 concentration levels, air temperature, elevation, vegetation, size of elderly population, population density, and baseline mortality). RESULTS We found a 0.89% (95% CI: 0.68, 1.10%) increase in all-cause, a 0.80% (95% CI: 0.41, 1.20%) increase in cardiovascular, and a 1.10% (95% CI: 0.59, 1.62%) increase in respiratory mortality per 10μg/m3 increase in PM2.5. Accounting for the downward bias induced by studies of single days, the all-cause mortality estimate increased to 1.01% (95% CI: 0.81, 1.20%). We found significant associations between mortality and several PM2.5 constituents. The most consistent and stronger associations were observed for elemental carbon (EC) and potassium (K). For most of the constituents, we observed high variability of effect estimates across cities. CONCLUSIONS Our meta-analysis suggests that (a) combustion elements such as EC and K have a stronger association with mortality, (b) single lag studies underestimate effects, and (c) estimates of PM2.5 and constituents differ across regions. Accounting for PM mass in constituent's health models may lead to more stable and comparable effect estimates across different studies. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION PROSPERO: CRD42017055765.
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Affiliation(s)
- Souzana Achilleos
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, MA, USA.
| | | | - Chih-Da Wu
- Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, National Chiayi University, Chiayi, Taiwan
| | - Joel D Schwartz
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Petros Koutrakis
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Stefania I Papatheodorou
- Cyprus International Institute for Environmental and Public Health, Cyprus University of Technology, Limassol, Cyprus
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Bechle MJ, Millet DB, Marshall JD. Does Urban Form Affect Urban NO 2? Satellite-Based Evidence for More than 1200 Cities. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2017; 51:12707-12716. [PMID: 28898072 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.7b01194] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Modifying urban form may be a strategy to mitigate urban air pollution. For example, evidence suggests that urban form can affect motor vehicle usage, a major contributor to urban air pollution. We use satellite-based measurements of urban form and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) to explore relationships between urban form and air pollution for a global data set of 1274 cities. Three of the urban form metrics studied (contiguity, circularity, and vegetation) have a statistically significant relationship with urban NO2; their combined effect could be substantial. As illustration, if findings presented here are causal, that would suggest that if Christchurch, New Zealand (a city at the 75th percentile for all three urban-form metrics, and with a network of buses, trams, and bicycle facilities) was transformed to match the urban form of Indio - Cathedral City, California, United States (a city at the 25th percentile for those same metrics, and exhibiting sprawl-like suburban development), our models suggest that Christchurch's NO2 concentrations would be ∼60% higher than its current level. We also find that the combined effect of urban form on NO2 is larger for small cities (β × IQR = -0.46 for cities < ∼300 000 people, versus -0.22 for all cities), an important finding given that cities less than 500 000 people contain a majority of the urban population and are where much of the future urban growth is expected to occur. This work highlights the need for future study of how changes in urban form and related land use and transportation policies impact urban air pollution, especially for small cities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew J Bechle
- Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of Washington , 201 More Hall, Seattle, Washington 98195, United States
| | - Dylan B Millet
- Department of Soil, Water, and Climate, University of Minnesota , 439 Borlaug Hall, St. Paul, Minnesota 55108, United States
| | - Julian D Marshall
- Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of Washington , 201 More Hall, Seattle, Washington 98195, United States
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Costa AF, Hoek G, Brunekreef B, Ponce de Leon ACM. Effects of NO 2 exposure on daily mortality in São Paulo, Brazil. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2017; 159:539-544. [PMID: 28888198 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2017.08.041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2017] [Revised: 08/10/2017] [Accepted: 08/23/2017] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Recent reports have suggested that air pollution mixtures represented by nitrogen dioxide (NO2) may have effects on human health, which are independent from those of particulate matter mass. We evaluate the association between NO2 and daily mortality among elderly using one- and multipollutant models. METHODS This study was a daily time series of non-accidental and cause-specific mortality among the elderly living in São Paulo, Brazil, between 2000 and 2011. Effects of NO2, particulate matter smaller than 10µm (PM10), carbon monoxide (CO) and ozone (O3) were estimated in Poisson generalized additive models. The single lag effect at lags 0 and 1 days and the cumulative effect from 0 to lag 10 days were evaluated in one-, two-, three- and four-pollutant models. The cumulative risk index (CRI) recently proposed to analyze associations with health of multiple correlated pollutants was additionally estimated for each multipollutant model. RESULTS An association between NO2, PM10, CO and O3 exposures and non-accidental and cause-specific deaths was found in one-pollutant models. NO2 effects remained significant in multipollutant models for non-accidental and circulatory deaths. The estimated CRIs suggested that circulatory deaths were mainly associated with NO2, and respiratory deaths mainly with CO and O3, regardless the lag. For non-accidental deaths, multipollutant models were associated with the highest CRI, with the main pollutants depending on the chosen lag. CONCLUSIONS The results suggest that air pollution mixtures represented by NO2 have an effect on non-accidental and circulatory mortality, which is independent from PM10, CO and O3. The CRI was always larger than the risks associated with single pollutants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amine Farias Costa
- Institute of Social Medicine, Rio de Janeiro State University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Brazilian National Cancer Institute, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
| | - Gerard Hoek
- Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Bert Brunekreef
- Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Center Utrecht, the Netherlands
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Clark LP, Millet DB, Marshall JD. Changes in Transportation-Related Air Pollution Exposures by Race-Ethnicity and Socioeconomic Status: Outdoor Nitrogen Dioxide in the United States in 2000 and 2010. ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES 2017; 125:097012. [PMID: 28930515 PMCID: PMC5915204 DOI: 10.1289/ehp959] [Citation(s) in RCA: 84] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2016] [Revised: 06/07/2017] [Accepted: 06/09/2017] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Disparities in exposure to air pollution by race-ethnicity and by socioeconomic status have been documented in the United States, but the impacts of declining transportation-related air pollutant emissions on disparities in exposure have not been studied in detail. OBJECTIVE This study was designed to estimate changes over time (2000 to 2010) in disparities in exposure to outdoor concentrations of a transportation-related air pollutant, nitrogen dioxide (NO2), in the United States. METHODS We combined annual average NO2 concentration estimates from a temporal land use regression model with Census demographic data to estimate outdoor exposures by race-ethnicity, socioeconomic characteristics (income, age, education), and by location (region, state, county, urban area) for the contiguous United States in 2000 and 2010. RESULTS Estimated annual average NO2 concentrations decreased from 2000 to 2010 for all of the race-ethnicity and socioeconomic status groups, including a decrease from 17.6 ppb to 10.7 ppb (-6.9 ppb) in nonwhite [non-(white alone, non-Hispanic)] populations, and 12.6 ppb to 7.8 ppb (-4.7 ppb) in white (white alone, non-Hispanic) populations. In 2000 and 2010, disparities in NO2 concentrations were larger by race-ethnicity than by income. Although the national nonwhite-white mean NO2 concentration disparity decreased from a difference of 5.0 ppb in 2000 to 2.9 ppb in 2010, estimated mean NO2 concentrations remained 37% higher for nonwhites than whites in 2010 (40% higher in 2000), and nonwhites were 2.5 times more likely than whites to live in a block group with an average NO2 concentration above the WHO annual guideline in 2010 (3.0 times more likely in 2000). CONCLUSIONS Findings suggest that absolute NO2 exposure disparities by race-ethnicity decreased from 2000 to 2010, but relative NO2 exposure disparities persisted, with higher NO2 concentrations for nonwhites than whites in 2010. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP959.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lara P Clark
- Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geo-Engineering, University of Minnesota , Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Washington , Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Dylan B Millet
- Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geo-Engineering, University of Minnesota , Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
- Department of Soil, Water, and Climate, University of Minnesota , St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
| | - Julian D Marshall
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Washington , Seattle, Washington, USA
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Day DB, Xiang J, Mo J, Li F, Chung M, Gong J, Weschler CJ, Ohman-Strickland PA, Sundell J, Weng W, Zhang Y, Zhang J(J. Association of Ozone Exposure With Cardiorespiratory Pathophysiologic Mechanisms in Healthy Adults. JAMA Intern Med 2017; 177:1344-1353. [PMID: 28715576 PMCID: PMC5710579 DOI: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2017.2842] [Citation(s) in RCA: 141] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2017] [Accepted: 04/25/2017] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Importance Exposure to ozone has been associated with cardiovascular mortality, but the underlying biological mechanisms are not yet understood. Objective To examine the association between ozone exposure and cardiopulmonary pathophysiologic mechanisms. Design, Setting, and Participants A longitudinal study involving 89 healthy adult participants living on a work campus in Changsha City, China, was conducted from December 1, 2014, to January 31, 2015. This unique quasiexperimental setting allowed for better characterization of air pollutant exposure effects because the participants spent most of their time in controlled indoor environments. Concentrations of indoor and outdoor ozone, along with the copollutants particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, and sulfur dioxide, were monitored throughout the study period and then combined with time-activity information and filtration conditions of each residence and office to estimate 24-hour and 2-week combined indoor and outdoor mean exposure concentrations. Associations between each exposure measure and outcome measure were analyzed using single-pollutant and 2-pollutant linear mixed models controlling for ambient temperature, secondhand smoke exposure, and personal-level time-varying covariates. Main Outcomes and Measures Biomarkers indicative of inflammation and oxidative stress, arterial stiffness, blood pressure, thrombotic factors, and spirometry were measured at 4 sessions. Results Of the 89 participants, 25 (28%) were women and the mean (SD) age was 31.5 (7.6) years. The 24-hour ozone exposure concentrations ranged from 1.4 to 19.4 parts per billion (ppb), corresponding to outdoor concentrations ranging from 4.3 to 47.9 ppb. Within this range, in models controlling for a second copollutant and other potential confounders, a 10-ppb increase in 24-hour ozone was associated with mean increases of 36.3% (95% CI, 29.9%-43.0%) in the level of platelet activation marker soluble P-selectin, 2.8% (95% CI, 0.6%-5.1%) in diastolic blood pressure, 18.1% (95% CI, 4.5%-33.5%) in pulmonary inflammation markers fractional exhaled nitric oxide, and 31.0% (95% CI, 0.2%-71.1%) in exhaled breath condensate nitrite and nitrate as well as a -9.5% (95% CI, -17.7% to -1.4%) decrease in arterial stiffness marker augmentation index. A 10-ppb increase in 2-week ozone was associated with increases of 61.1% (95% CI, 37.8%-88.2%) in soluble P-selectin level and 126.2% (95% CI, 12.1%-356.2%) in exhaled breath condensate nitrite and nitrate level. Other measured biomarkers, including spirometry, showed no significant associations with either 24-hour ozone or 2-week ozone exposures. Conclusions and Relevance Short-term ozone exposure at levels not associated with lung function changes was associated with platelet activation and blood pressure increases, suggesting a possible mechanism by which ozone may affect cardiovascular health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Drew B. Day
- Global Health Institute, Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
| | - Jianbang Xiang
- Department of Building Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Indoor Air Quality Evaluation and Control, Beijing, China
| | - Jinhan Mo
- Department of Building Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Indoor Air Quality Evaluation and Control, Beijing, China
| | - Feng Li
- Department of Respiratory Medicine, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Mingkei Chung
- Global Health Research Center, Duke Kunshan University, Kunshan, Jiangsu Province, China
| | - Jicheng Gong
- Global Health Institute, Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
- College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering and Beijing Innovation Center for Engineering Science and Advanced Technology, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Charles J. Weschler
- Department of Building Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Indoor Air Quality Evaluation and Control, Beijing, China
- Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey
| | | | - Jan Sundell
- Department of Building Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Wenguo Weng
- Institute of Public Safety Research, Department of Engineering Physics, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Yinping Zhang
- Department of Building Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Indoor Air Quality Evaluation and Control, Beijing, China
| | - Junfeng (Jim) Zhang
- Global Health Institute, Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
- Global Health Research Center, Duke Kunshan University, Kunshan, Jiangsu Province, China
- College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering and Beijing Innovation Center for Engineering Science and Advanced Technology, Peking University, Beijing, China
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Ground-Level NO2 Concentrations over China Inferred from the Satellite OMI and CMAQ Model Simulations. REMOTE SENSING 2017. [DOI: 10.3390/rs9060519] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
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Mills IC, Atkinson RW, Anderson HR, Maynard RL, Strachan DP. Distinguishing the associations between daily mortality and hospital admissions and nitrogen dioxide from those of particulate matter: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ Open 2016; 6:e010751. [PMID: 27443553 PMCID: PMC4964176 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2015-010751] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To quantitatively assess time-series studies of daily nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and mortality and hospital admissions which also controlled for particulate matter (PM) to determine whether or to what extent the NO2 associations are independent of PM. DESIGN A systematic review and meta-analysis. METHODS Time-series studies-published in peer-reviewed journals worldwide, up to May 2011-that reported both single-pollutant and two-pollutant model estimates for NO2 and PM were ascertained from bibliographic databases (PubMed, EMBASE and Web of Science) and reviews. Random-effects summary estimates were calculated globally and stratified by different geographical regions, and effect modification was investigated. OUTCOME MEASURES Mortality and hospital admissions for various cardiovascular or respiratory diseases in different age groups in the general population. RESULTS 60 eligible studies were identified, and meta-analysis was conducted on 23 outcomes. Two-pollutant model study estimates generally showed that the NO2 associations were independent of PM mass. For all-cause mortality, a 10 µg/m(3) increase in 24-hour NO2 was associated with a 0.78% (95% CI 0.47% to 1.09%) increase in the risk of death, which reduced to 0.60% (0.33% to 0.87%) after control for PM. Heterogeneity between geographical region-specific estimates was removed by control for PM (I(2) from 66.9% to 0%). Estimates of PM and daily mortality assembled from the same studies were greatly attenuated after control for NO2: from 0.51% (0.29% to 0.74%) to 0.18% (-0.11% to 0.47%) per 10 µg/m(3) PM10 and 0.74% (0.34% to 1.14%) to 0.54% (-0.25% to 1.34%) for PM2.5. CONCLUSIONS The association between short-term exposure to NO2 and adverse health outcomes is largely independent of PM mass. Further studies should attempt to investigate whether this is a generic PM effect or whether it is modified by the source and physicochemical characteristics of PM. This finding strengthens the argument for NO2 having a causal role in health effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- I C Mills
- Public Health England, Centre for Radiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards, Oxfordshire, UK
| | - R W Atkinson
- Population Health Research Institute and MRC-PHE Centre for Environment and Health, St George's, University of London, London, UK
| | - H R Anderson
- Population Health Research Institute and MRC-PHE Centre for Environment and Health, St George's, University of London, London, UK
- MRC-PHE Centre for Environment and Health, King's College London, London, UK
| | | | - D P Strachan
- Population Health Research Institute and MRC-PHE Centre for Environment and Health, St George's, University of London, London, UK
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Bari MA, Kindzierski WB. Evaluation of air quality indicators in Alberta, Canada - An international perspective. ENVIRONMENT INTERNATIONAL 2016; 92-93:119-129. [PMID: 27071052 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2016.03.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2015] [Revised: 03/16/2016] [Accepted: 03/17/2016] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
There has been an increase in oil sands development in northern Alberta, Canada and an overall increase in economic activity in the province in recent years. An evaluation of the state of air quality was conducted in four Alberta locations - urban centers of Calgary and Edmonton, and smaller communities of Fort McKay and Fort McMurray in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region (AOSR). Concentration trends, diurnal hourly and monthly average concentration profiles, and exceedances of provincial, national and international air quality guidelines were assessed for several criteria air pollutants over the period 1998 to 2014. Two methods were used to evaluate trends. Parametric analysis of annual median 1h concentrations and non-parametric analysis of annual geometric mean 1h concentrations showed consistent decreasing trends for NO2 and SO2 (<1ppb per year), CO (<0.1ppm per year) at all stations, decreasing for THC (<0.1ppm per year) and increasing for O3 (≤0.52ppb per year) at most stations and unchanged for PM2.5 at all stations in Edmonton and Calgary over a 17-year period. Little consistency in trends was observed among the methods for the same air pollutants other than for THC (increasing in Fort McKay <0.1ppm per year and no trend in Fort McMurray), PM2.5 in Fort McKay and Fort McMurray (no trend) and CO (decreasing <0.1ppm per year in Fort McMurray) over the same period. Levels of air quality indicators at the four locations were compared with other Canadian and international urban areas to judge the current state of air quality. Median and annual average concentrations for Alberta locations tended to be the smallest in Fort McKay and Fort McMurray. Other than for PM2.5, Calgary and Edmonton tended to have median and annual average concentrations comparable to and/or below that of larger populated Canadian and U.S. cities, depending upon the air pollutant.
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Affiliation(s)
- Md Aynul Bari
- School of Public Health, University of Alberta, 3-57 South Academic Building, 11405-87 Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta, T6G 1C9, Canada.
| | - Warren B Kindzierski
- School of Public Health, University of Alberta, 3-57 South Academic Building, 11405-87 Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta, T6G 1C9, Canada
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Ma Y, Xiao B, Liu C, Zhao Y, Zheng X. Association between Ambient Air Pollution and Emergency Room Visits for Respiratory Diseases in Spring Dust Storm Season in Lanzhou, China. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2016; 13:ijerph13060613. [PMID: 27338430 PMCID: PMC4924070 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph13060613] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2016] [Revised: 06/09/2016] [Accepted: 06/13/2016] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Background: Air pollution has become a major global public health problem. A number of studies have confirmed the association between air pollutants and emergency room (ER) visits for respiratory diseases in developed countries and some Asian countries, but little evidence has been seen in Western China. This study aims to concentrate on this region. Methods: A time-series analysis was used to examine the specific effects of major air pollutants (PM10, SO2 and NO2) on ER visits for respiratory diseases from 2007 to 2011 in the severely polluted city of Lanzhou. We examined the effects of air pollutants for stratified groups by age and gender, accounting for the modifying effect of dust storms in spring to test the possible interaction. Results: Significant associations were found between outdoor air pollution concentrations and respiratory diseases, as expressed by daily ER visits in Lanzhou in the spring dust season. The association between air pollution and ER visits appeared to be more evident on dust days than non-dust days. Relative risks (RRs) and 95% CIs per 10 µg/m3 increase in 3-day PM10 (L3), 5-day SO2 (L5), and the average of current and previous 2-day NO2 (L01) were 1.140 (1.071–1.214), 1.080 (0.967–1.205), and 1.298 (1.158–1.454), respectively, on dust days. More significant associations between PM10, SO2 and NO2 and ER visits were found on dust days for elderly females, elderly males and adult males, respectively. Conclusions: This study strengthens the evidence of dust-exacerbated ER visits for respiratory diseases in Lanzhou.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuxia Ma
- College of Atmospheric Sciences, Key Laboratory of Semi-Arid Climate Change, Ministry of Education, Center for Meteorological Environment and Human Health, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China.
| | - Bingshuang Xiao
- College of Atmospheric Sciences, Key Laboratory of Semi-Arid Climate Change, Ministry of Education, Center for Meteorological Environment and Human Health, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China.
| | - Chang Liu
- College of Atmospheric Sciences, Key Laboratory of Semi-Arid Climate Change, Ministry of Education, Center for Meteorological Environment and Human Health, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China.
| | - Yuxin Zhao
- College of Atmospheric Sciences, Key Laboratory of Semi-Arid Climate Change, Ministry of Education, Center for Meteorological Environment and Human Health, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China.
| | - Xiaodong Zheng
- College of Atmospheric Sciences, Key Laboratory of Semi-Arid Climate Change, Ministry of Education, Center for Meteorological Environment and Human Health, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China.
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Geddes JA, Martin RV, Boys BL, van Donkelaar A. Long-Term Trends Worldwide in Ambient NO2 Concentrations Inferred from Satellite Observations. ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES 2016; 124:281-9. [PMID: 26241114 PMCID: PMC4786989 DOI: 10.1289/ehp.1409567] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2014] [Accepted: 07/29/2015] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Air pollution is associated with morbidity and premature mortality. Satellite remote sensing provides globally consistent decadal-scale observations of ambient nitrogen dioxide (NO2) pollution. OBJECTIVE We determined global population-weighted annual mean NO2 concentrations from 1996 through 2012. METHODS We used observations of NO2 tropospheric column densities from three satellite instruments in combination with chemical transport modeling to produce a global 17-year record of ground-level NO2 at 0.1° × 0.1° resolution. We calculated linear trends in population-weighted annual mean NO2 (PWMNO2) concentrations in different regions around the world. RESULTS We found that PWMNO2 in high-income North America (Canada and the United States) decreased more steeply than in any other region, having declined at a rate of -4.7%/year [95% confidence interval (CI): -5.3, -4.1]. PWMNO2 decreased in western Europe at a rate of -2.5%/year (95% CI: -3.0, -2.1). The highest PWMNO2 occurred in high-income Asia Pacific (predominantly Japan and South Korea) in 1996, with a subsequent decrease of -2.1%/year (95% CI: -2.7, -1.5). In contrast, PWMNO2 almost tripled in East Asia (China, North Korea, and Taiwan) at a rate of 6.7%/year (95% CI: 6.0, 7.3). The satellite-derived estimates of trends in ground-level NO2 were consistent with regional trends inferred from data obtained from ground-station monitoring networks in North America (within 0.7%/year) and Europe (within 0.3%/year). Our rankings of regional average NO2 and long-term trends differed from the satellite-derived estimates of fine particulate matter reported elsewhere, demonstrating the utility of both indicators to describe changing pollutant mixtures. CONCLUSIONS Long-term trends in satellite-derived ambient NO2 provide new information about changing global exposure to ambient air pollution. Our estimates are publicly available at http://fizz.phys.dal.ca/~atmos/martin/?page_id=232.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey A. Geddes
- Department of Physics and Atmospheric Science, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
- Address correspondence to J.A. Geddes, Department of Physics and Atmospheric Science, Dalhousie University, Box 15000, Halifax, NS, B3H 4R2 Canada. Telephone: 1 (902) 494-4261. E-mail:
| | - Randall V. Martin
- Department of Physics and Atmospheric Science, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
- Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Brian L. Boys
- Department of Physics and Atmospheric Science, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
| | - Aaron van Donkelaar
- Department of Physics and Atmospheric Science, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
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Chen H, Wang J, Li Q, Yagouti A, Lavigne E, Foty R, Burnett RT, Villeneuve PJ, Cakmak S, Copes R. Assessment of the effect of cold and hot temperatures on mortality in Ontario, Canada: a population-based study. CMAJ Open 2016; 4:E48-58. [PMID: 27280114 PMCID: PMC4866918 DOI: 10.9778/cmajo.20150111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Ambient high temperature is associated with death; however, heat-related risk of death has not been quantified systematically in Ontario, the most populous province in Canada. Less is known about cold-related risk in this population. Our objective was to quantify the health impact from cold and hot temperatures in Ontario. METHODS The study population consisted of all residents of Ontario who died between Jan. 1, 1996, and Dec. 31, 2010, from any nonaccidental cause. A case-crossover analysis was applied to assess the relation between daily temperature fluctuation and deaths from nonaccidental and selected causes in cold (December-February) and warm (June-August) seasons, respectively, adjusting for various potential confounders. Risk estimates were obtained for each census division, then pooled across Ontario. We examined potential effect modification for selected comorbidities and sociodemographic characteristics. RESULTS In warm seasons, each 5°C increase in daily mean temperature was associated with a 2.5% increase in nonaccidental deaths (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.3% to 3.8%) on the day of exposure (lag 0). In cold seasons, each 5°C decrease in daily temperature was associated with a 3.0% (95% CI 1.8% to 4.2%) increase in nonaccidental deaths, which persisted over 7 days (lag 0-6). The cold-related effects (lag 0-6) were stronger for cardiovascular-related deaths (any cardiovascular death: 4.1%, 95% CI 2.3% to 5.9%; ischemic heart disease: 5.8%, 95% CI 3.6% to 8.1%), especially among people less than 65 years of age (8.0%, 95% CI 3.0% to 13.0%). Conversely, heat most strongly increased respiratory-related deaths during admission to hospital (26.0%, 95% CI 0% to 61.4%). Across Ontario, each 5°C change in daily temperature was estimated to induce 7 excess deaths per day in cold seasons and 4 excess deaths in warm seasons. INTERPRETATION Heat contributed to excess deaths in Ontario, although the effect of cold weather appeared to be greater. Further work is required to better define high-risk subgroups, which might include the homeless and people with inadequately heated housing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hong Chen
- Public Health Ontario (Chen, Wang, Li, Copes); Dalla Lana School of Public Health (Chen, Foty, Villeneuve, Copes), University of Toronto, Toronto, Ont.; Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (Chen), Toronto, Ont.; Climate Change and Health Office (Yagouti), Health Canada; Air Health Science Division (Lavigne), Health Canada; Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine (Lavigne), University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ont.; Sick Kids Hospital (Foty), Toronto, Ont.; Population Studies Division (Burnett, Cakmak), Health Canada; Department of Health Sciences (Villeneuve), Carleton University, Ottawa, Ont
| | - Jun Wang
- Public Health Ontario (Chen, Wang, Li, Copes); Dalla Lana School of Public Health (Chen, Foty, Villeneuve, Copes), University of Toronto, Toronto, Ont.; Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (Chen), Toronto, Ont.; Climate Change and Health Office (Yagouti), Health Canada; Air Health Science Division (Lavigne), Health Canada; Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine (Lavigne), University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ont.; Sick Kids Hospital (Foty), Toronto, Ont.; Population Studies Division (Burnett, Cakmak), Health Canada; Department of Health Sciences (Villeneuve), Carleton University, Ottawa, Ont
| | - Qiongsi Li
- Public Health Ontario (Chen, Wang, Li, Copes); Dalla Lana School of Public Health (Chen, Foty, Villeneuve, Copes), University of Toronto, Toronto, Ont.; Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (Chen), Toronto, Ont.; Climate Change and Health Office (Yagouti), Health Canada; Air Health Science Division (Lavigne), Health Canada; Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine (Lavigne), University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ont.; Sick Kids Hospital (Foty), Toronto, Ont.; Population Studies Division (Burnett, Cakmak), Health Canada; Department of Health Sciences (Villeneuve), Carleton University, Ottawa, Ont
| | - Abderrahmane Yagouti
- Public Health Ontario (Chen, Wang, Li, Copes); Dalla Lana School of Public Health (Chen, Foty, Villeneuve, Copes), University of Toronto, Toronto, Ont.; Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (Chen), Toronto, Ont.; Climate Change and Health Office (Yagouti), Health Canada; Air Health Science Division (Lavigne), Health Canada; Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine (Lavigne), University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ont.; Sick Kids Hospital (Foty), Toronto, Ont.; Population Studies Division (Burnett, Cakmak), Health Canada; Department of Health Sciences (Villeneuve), Carleton University, Ottawa, Ont
| | - Eric Lavigne
- Public Health Ontario (Chen, Wang, Li, Copes); Dalla Lana School of Public Health (Chen, Foty, Villeneuve, Copes), University of Toronto, Toronto, Ont.; Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (Chen), Toronto, Ont.; Climate Change and Health Office (Yagouti), Health Canada; Air Health Science Division (Lavigne), Health Canada; Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine (Lavigne), University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ont.; Sick Kids Hospital (Foty), Toronto, Ont.; Population Studies Division (Burnett, Cakmak), Health Canada; Department of Health Sciences (Villeneuve), Carleton University, Ottawa, Ont
| | - Richard Foty
- Public Health Ontario (Chen, Wang, Li, Copes); Dalla Lana School of Public Health (Chen, Foty, Villeneuve, Copes), University of Toronto, Toronto, Ont.; Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (Chen), Toronto, Ont.; Climate Change and Health Office (Yagouti), Health Canada; Air Health Science Division (Lavigne), Health Canada; Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine (Lavigne), University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ont.; Sick Kids Hospital (Foty), Toronto, Ont.; Population Studies Division (Burnett, Cakmak), Health Canada; Department of Health Sciences (Villeneuve), Carleton University, Ottawa, Ont
| | - Richard T Burnett
- Public Health Ontario (Chen, Wang, Li, Copes); Dalla Lana School of Public Health (Chen, Foty, Villeneuve, Copes), University of Toronto, Toronto, Ont.; Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (Chen), Toronto, Ont.; Climate Change and Health Office (Yagouti), Health Canada; Air Health Science Division (Lavigne), Health Canada; Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine (Lavigne), University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ont.; Sick Kids Hospital (Foty), Toronto, Ont.; Population Studies Division (Burnett, Cakmak), Health Canada; Department of Health Sciences (Villeneuve), Carleton University, Ottawa, Ont
| | - Paul J Villeneuve
- Public Health Ontario (Chen, Wang, Li, Copes); Dalla Lana School of Public Health (Chen, Foty, Villeneuve, Copes), University of Toronto, Toronto, Ont.; Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (Chen), Toronto, Ont.; Climate Change and Health Office (Yagouti), Health Canada; Air Health Science Division (Lavigne), Health Canada; Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine (Lavigne), University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ont.; Sick Kids Hospital (Foty), Toronto, Ont.; Population Studies Division (Burnett, Cakmak), Health Canada; Department of Health Sciences (Villeneuve), Carleton University, Ottawa, Ont
| | - Sabit Cakmak
- Public Health Ontario (Chen, Wang, Li, Copes); Dalla Lana School of Public Health (Chen, Foty, Villeneuve, Copes), University of Toronto, Toronto, Ont.; Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (Chen), Toronto, Ont.; Climate Change and Health Office (Yagouti), Health Canada; Air Health Science Division (Lavigne), Health Canada; Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine (Lavigne), University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ont.; Sick Kids Hospital (Foty), Toronto, Ont.; Population Studies Division (Burnett, Cakmak), Health Canada; Department of Health Sciences (Villeneuve), Carleton University, Ottawa, Ont
| | - Ray Copes
- Public Health Ontario (Chen, Wang, Li, Copes); Dalla Lana School of Public Health (Chen, Foty, Villeneuve, Copes), University of Toronto, Toronto, Ont.; Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (Chen), Toronto, Ont.; Climate Change and Health Office (Yagouti), Health Canada; Air Health Science Division (Lavigne), Health Canada; Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine (Lavigne), University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ont.; Sick Kids Hospital (Foty), Toronto, Ont.; Population Studies Division (Burnett, Cakmak), Health Canada; Department of Health Sciences (Villeneuve), Carleton University, Ottawa, Ont
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Bechle MJ, Millet DB, Marshall JD. National Spatiotemporal Exposure Surface for NO2: Monthly Scaling of a Satellite-Derived Land-Use Regression, 2000-2010. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2015; 49:12297-305. [PMID: 26397123 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.5b02882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 82] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
Land-use regression (LUR) is widely used for estimating within-urban variability in air pollution. While LUR has recently been extended to national and continental scales, these models are typically for long-term averages. Here we present NO2 surfaces for the continental United States with excellent spatial resolution (∼100 m) and monthly average concentrations for one decade. We investigate multiple potential data sources (e.g., satellite column and surface estimates, high- and standard-resolution satellite data, and a mechanistic model [WRF-Chem]), approaches to model building (e.g., one model for the whole country versus having separate models for urban and rural areas, monthly LURs versus temporal scaling of a spatial LUR), and spatial interpolation methods for temporal scaling factors (e.g., kriging versus inverse distance weighted). Our core approach uses NO2 measurements from U.S. EPA monitors (2000-2010) to build a spatial LUR and to calculate spatially varying temporal scaling factors. The model captures 82% of the spatial and 76% of the temporal variability (population-weighted average) of monthly mean NO2 concentrations from U.S. EPA monitors with low average bias (21%) and error (2.4 ppb). Model performance in absolute terms is similar near versus far from monitors, and in urban, suburban, and rural locations (mean absolute error 2-3 ppb); since low-density locations generally experience lower concentrations, model performance in relative terms is better near monitors than far from monitors (mean bias 3% versus 40%) and is better for urban and suburban locations (1-6%) than for rural locations (78%, reflecting the relatively clean conditions in many rural areas). During 2000-2010, population-weighted mean NO2 exposure decreased 42% (1.0 ppb [∼5.2%] per year), from 23.2 ppb (year 2000) to 13.5 ppb (year 2010). We apply our approach to all U.S. Census blocks in the contiguous United States to provide 132 months of publicly available, high-resolution NO2 concentration estimates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew J Bechle
- Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geo- Engineering and ‡Department of Soil, Water, and Climate, University of Minnesota , Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455, United States
| | - Dylan B Millet
- Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geo- Engineering and ‡Department of Soil, Water, and Climate, University of Minnesota , Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455, United States
| | - Julian D Marshall
- Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geo- Engineering and ‡Department of Soil, Water, and Climate, University of Minnesota , Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455, United States
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Jhun I, Coull BA, Zanobetti A, Koutrakis P. The impact of nitrogen oxides concentration decreases on ozone trends in the USA. AIR QUALITY, ATMOSPHERE, & HEALTH 2015; 8:283-292. [PMID: 27547271 PMCID: PMC4988408 DOI: 10.1007/s11869-014-0279-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/17/2023]
Abstract
Ozone (O3) has harmful effects on human health and ecosystems. In the USA, significant reductions of O3 precursors-nitrogen oxides (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs)-have not yielded proportionate decreases in O3. NOx is a major precursor of O3 as well as a quencher of O3 through NOx titration, which is especially important during the night and wintertime. In this study, we investigated the potential dual impact of NOx concentration decreases on recent O3 trends by season and time of day. We analyzed hourly O3 and NOx measurement data between 1994 and 2010 in the continental USA. Nationally, hourly O3 concentrations decreased by as much as -0.38 ppb/year with a standard error of 0.05 ppb/year during the warm season midday, but increased by as much as +0.30±0.04 ppb/year during the cold season. High O3 concentrations (≥75th percentile) during the warm season decreased significantly, however, there were notable increases in the cold season as well as warm season nighttime; we found that these increases were largely attributable to NOx decreases as less O3 is quenched. These O3 increases, or "penalties", related to NOx reductions remained robust at a wide range of O3 concentrations (5th to 99th percentile), and even after accounting for VOC reductions and meteorological parameters, including temperature, wind speed, and water vapor pressure. In addition, we observed O3 penalties across rural, suburban, and urban areas. Nonetheless, peak O3 concentrations (99.9th percentile) were mitigated by NOx reductions. In addition, there was some suggestive evidence that VOC reductions have been more effective in reducing O3.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iny Jhun
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, 401 Park Drive, Landmark 4 West (Rm 412J), Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - Brent A. Coull
- Department of Biostatistics, Harvard School of Public Health, 655 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Antonella Zanobetti
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, 401 Park Drive, Landmark 4 West (Rm 412J), Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - Petros Koutrakis
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, 401 Park Drive, Landmark 4 West (Rm 412J), Boston, MA 02215, USA
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Kim KN, Lee H, Kim JH, Jung K, Lim YH, Hong YC. Physical Activity- and Alcohol-dependent Association Between Air Pollution Exposure and Elevated Liver Enzyme Levels: An Elderly Panel Study. J Prev Med Public Health 2015; 48:151-69. [PMID: 26081652 PMCID: PMC4484281 DOI: 10.3961/jpmph.15.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2015] [Accepted: 04/30/2015] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES The deleterious effects of air pollution on various health outcomes have been demonstrated. However, few studies have examined the effects of air pollution on liver enzyme levels. METHODS Blood samples were drawn up to three times between 2008 and 2010 from 545 elderly individuals who regularly visited a community welfare center in Seoul, Korea. Data regarding ambient air pollutants (particulate matter ≤2.5 μm [PM2.5], nitrogen dioxide [NO2], ozone [O3], carbon monoxide, and sulfur dioxide) from monitoring stations were used to estimate air pollution exposure. The effects of the air pollutants on the concentrations of three liver enzymes (aspartate aminotransferase [AST], alanine aminotransferase [ALT], and γ-glutamyltranspeptidase [γ-GTP)]) were evaluated using generalized additive and linear mixed models. RESULTS Interquartile range increases in the concentrations of the pollutants showed significant associations of PM2.5 with AST (3.0% increase, p=0.0052), ALT (3.2% increase, p=0.0313), and γ-GTP (5.0% increase, p=0.0051) levels; NO2 with AST (3.5% increase, p=0.0060) and ALT (3.8% increase, p=0.0179) levels; and O3 with γ-GTP (5.3% increase, p=0.0324) levels. Significant modification of these effects by exercise and alcohol consumption was found (p for interaction <0.05). The effects of air pollutants were greater in non-exercisers and heavy drinkers. CONCLUSIONS Short-term exposure to air pollutants such as PM2.5, NO2, and O3 is associated with increased liver enzyme levels in the elderly. These adverse effects can be reduced by exercising regularly and abstinence from alcohol.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyoung-Nam Kim
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - Hyemi Lee
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - Jin Hee Kim
- Department of Environmental Health, Graduate School of Public Health, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Kweon Jung
- Seoul Metropolitan Institute of Public Health and Environment, Seoul, Korea
| | - Youn-Hee Lim
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Seoul National University Medical Research Center, Seoul, Korea ; Environmental Health Center, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - Yun-Chul Hong
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea ; Institute of Environmental Medicine, Seoul National University Medical Research Center, Seoul, Korea ; Environmental Health Center, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
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Wilson WE. The relationship between daily cardiovascular mortality and daily ambient concentrations of particulate pollutants (sulfur, arsenic, selenium, and mercury) and daily source contributions from coal power plants and smelters (individually, combined, and with interaction) in Phoenix, AZ, 1995-1998: A multipollutant approach to acute, time-series air pollution epidemiology: I. JOURNAL OF THE AIR & WASTE MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION (1995) 2015; 65:599-610. [PMID: 25947318 DOI: 10.1080/10962247.2015.1033067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
UNLABELLED The objective of this paper is to estimate the increase in risk of daily cardiovascular mortality due to an increase in the daily ambient concentration of the individual particulate pollutants sulfur (S), arsenic (As), selenium (Se), and mercury (Hg) using single-pollutant models (SPMs) and to compare this risk to the combined increase in risk due to an increase in all four pollutants by including all four pollutants in the same model (multipollutant model, MPM) and to the risks from source contributions from power plants and smelters. Individual betas in a multipollutant model (MPM) were summed to give a combined beta. Interaction was investigated with a pollutant product term. SPMs (controlling for time trends, temperature, and relative humidity), for an interquartile range (IQR) increase in the pollutant concentration on lag day 0, gave these percent excess risks (±95% confidence levels): S, 6.9% (1.3-12%); As, 2.9% (0.4-5.5%); Se, 1.4% (-1.7 to 4.6); Hg, 9.6% (4.8-14.6%). The SPM beta for S (as sulfate) was higher than found in other studies. The SPM beta for Hg gave the largest t-statistic and beta per unit mass of any pollutant studied. An (IQR) increase in all four pollutants gave an excess risk of 15.4% (7.5-23.8%), slightly smaller than the combination of S and Hg, 16.7% (9.1-24.9%). The combined beta was 71% of the sum of the four individual SPM betas, indicating a reduction in confounding among pollutants in the combined model. As and Se were shown to be noncausal; their SPM betas could be explained as confounding by S. IMPLICATIONS The combined effect of several pollutants can be estimated by including the appropriate pollutants in the same statistical model, summing their individual betas to give a combined beta, and using a variance-covariance matrix to obtain the standard error. This approach identifies and reduces confounding among the species in the multipollutant model and can be used to identify confounded species that have no independent relationship with mortality. The effect of several pollutants acting together may be higher than that of one pollutant. Further work is needed to understand the strong relationship of mortality with particulate mercury and sulfate.
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Adar SD, Filigrana PA, Clements N, Peel JL. Ambient Coarse Particulate Matter and Human Health: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Curr Environ Health Rep 2014; 1:258-274. [PMID: 25152864 PMCID: PMC4129238 DOI: 10.1007/s40572-014-0022-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 132] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
Airborne particles have been linked to increased mortality and morbidity. As most research has focused on fine particles (PM2.5), the health implications of coarse particles (PM10-2.5) are not well understood. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of associations for short- and long-term PM10-2.5 concentrations with mortality and hospital admissions. Using 23 mortality and 10 hospital admissions studies, we documented suggestive evidence of increased morbidity and mortality in relation to higher short-term PM10-2.5 concentrations, with stronger relationships for respiratory than cardiovascular endpoints. Reported associations were highly heterogeneous, however, especially by geographic region and average PM10-2.5 concentrations. Adjustment for PM2.5 and publication bias resulted in weaker and less precise effect estimates, although positive associations remained for short-term PM10-2.5 concentrations. Inconsistent relationships between effect estimates for PM10-2.5 and correlations between PM10-2.5 and PM2.5 concentrations, however, indicate that PM10-2.5 associations cannot be solely explained by co-exposure to PM2.5. While suggestive evidence was found of increased mortality with long-term PM10-2.5 concentrations, these associations were not robust to control for PM2.5. Additional research is required to better understand sources of heterogeneity of associations between PM10-2.5 and adverse health outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara D. Adar
- Department of Epidemiology, University of Michigan, School of Public Health, 1420 Washington Heights – SPHII-5539, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029 USA
| | - Paola A. Filigrana
- Department of Epidemiology, University of Michigan, School of Public Health, 1420 Washington Heights – SPHII-5539, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029 USA
| | - Nicholas Clements
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Colorado, 135 30th St., Boulder, CO 80305 USA
| | - Jennifer L. Peel
- Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Campus Delivery 1681, Fort Collins, CO 80523-1681 USA
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Vanos JK, Cakmak S, Kalkstein LS, Yagouti A. Association of weather and air pollution interactions on daily mortality in 12 Canadian cities. AIR QUALITY, ATMOSPHERE, & HEALTH 2014; 8:307-320. [PMID: 26052369 PMCID: PMC4449933 DOI: 10.1007/s11869-014-0266-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2013] [Accepted: 04/30/2014] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
It has been well established that both meteorological attributes and air pollution concentrations affect human health outcomes. We examined all cause nonaccident mortality relationships for 28 years (1981-2008) in relation to air pollution and synoptic weather type (encompassing air mass) data in 12 Canadian cities. This study first determines the likelihood of summertime extreme air pollution events within weather types using spatial synoptic classification. Second, it examines the modifying effect of weather types on the relative risk of mortality (RR) due to daily concentrations of air pollution (nitrogen dioxide, ozone, sulfur dioxide, and particulate matter <2.5 μm). We assess both single- and two-pollutant interactions to determine dependent and independent pollutant effects using the relatively new time series technique of distributed lag nonlinear modeling (DLNM). Results display dry tropical (DT) and moist tropical plus (MT+) weathers to result in a fourfold and twofold increased likelihood, respectively, of an extreme pollution event (top 5 % of pollution concentrations throughout the 28 years) occurring. We also demonstrate statistically significant effects of single-pollutant exposure on mortality (p < 0.05) to be dependent on summer weather type, where stronger results occur in dry moderate (fair weather) and DT or MT+ weather types. The overall average single-effect RR increases due to pollutant exposure within DT and MT+ weather types are 14.9 and 11.9 %, respectively. Adjusted exposures (two-way pollutant effect estimates) generally results in decreased RR estimates, indicating that the pollutants are not independent. Adjusting for ozone significantly lowers 67 % of the single-pollutant RR estimates and reduces model variability, which demonstrates that ozone significantly controls a portion of the mortality signal from the model. Our findings demonstrate the mortality risks of air pollution exposure to differ by weather type, with increased accuracy obtained when accounting for interactive effects through adjustment for dependent pollutants using a DLNM.
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Affiliation(s)
- J. K. Vanos
- Environmental Health Research Bureau, Population Studies Division, Health Canada, 50 Columbine Driveway, Ottawa, ON K1A 0K9 Canada
- Atmospheric Sciences Group, Department of Geosciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX USA
| | - S. Cakmak
- Environmental Health Research Bureau, Population Studies Division, Health Canada, 50 Columbine Driveway, Ottawa, ON K1A 0K9 Canada
| | - L. S. Kalkstein
- Miller School of Medicine, Department of Public Health Sciences, Environment and Public Health Division, University of Miami, Miami, FL USA
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Abstract
BACKGROUND Air quality degraded by black smoke (particulate matter, PM10), sulphur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxide (NO(x)) affects human health. Improvements following national legislation have lowered death rates. Whether background air pollution levels continue to affect human health remains unclear. AIM To determine impact of air pollutant concentrations (PM10, SO2 and NO(x)) on in-hospital mortality for acute medical admissions to St James's Hospital over a decade (2002-11). DESIGN All emergency admissions (55,596 episodes in n = 32,581 patients) were tracked prospectively and mortality assessed. Daily levels of PM10, SO2 and NO(x) were obtained from monitoring stations in our catchment area. METHODS Univariate and multivariate logistic regression was employed to examine relationships between pollutant concentration and odds ratio (OR) for death following adjustment for other mortality predictors. RESULTS Mortality related to each pollutant variable assessed (as quintiles of increasing atmospheric concentration) was significantly predictive. For PM10 and SO2, mortality in the highest three quintile concentrations (compared with base quintile) was significantly increased (P < 0.001) with univariate ORs of 1.24, 1.36 and 1.25 for PM10 and 1.43, 1.54 and 1.58 for SO2, respectively. Mortality in all quintile concentrations (compared with base quintile) was significantly increased (P < 0.05) for NO(x) with univariate ORs of 1.14, 1.18, 1.28 and 1.35, respectively. Following adjustment for other mortality predictors such as acute illness severity, all three air pollutants were independently predictive of mortality. CONCLUSION Despite improvement to air quality in Dublin, the prevailing background pollutant concentrations continue to affect human health at levels considered safe and below that previously recognized.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Lyons
- Department of Internal Medicine, St James's Hospital, Dublin 8, Ireland.
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