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ACUTE RESPIRATORY HEALTH EFFECTS OF AIR POLLUTION ON ASTHMATIC CHILDREN IN US INNER CITIES
Citation:
OCONNOR, G. T., L. M. NEAS, B. VAUGHN, M. KATTAN, H. MITCHELL, P. MASTIN, E. F. CRAIN, R. EVANS, R. GRUCHALIA, W. MORGAN, J. STOUT, M. LIPPMANN, AND G. K. Adams. ACUTE RESPIRATORY HEALTH EFFECTS OF AIR POLLUTION ON ASTHMATIC CHILDREN IN US INNER CITIES. JOURNAL OF ALLERGY AND CLINICAL IMMUNOLOGY. Journal of Allergy Clinical Immunology, 121(5):1133-1139, (2008).
Impact/Purpose:
To investigate the association between fluctuations in outdoor air pollution and asthma morbidity among inner-city children
Description:
BACKGROUND: Children with asthma in inner-city communities may be particularly vulnerable to adverse effects of air pollution because of their airways disease and exposure to relatively high levels of motor vehicle emissions. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association between fluctuations in outdoor air pollution and asthma morbidity among inner-city children with asthma. METHODS: We analyzed data from 861 children with persistent asthma in 7 US urban communities who performed 2-week periods of twice-daily pulmonary function testing every 6 months for 2 years. Asthma symptom data were collected every 2 months. Daily pollution measurements were obtained from the Aerometric Information Retrieval System. The relationship of lung function and symptoms to fluctuations in pollutant concentrations was examined by using mixed models. RESULTS: Almost all pollutant concentrations measured were below the National Ambient Air Quality Standards. In single-pollutant models, higher 5-day average concentrations of NO2, sulfur dioxide, and particles smaller than 2.5 microm were associated with significantly lower pulmonary function. Higher pollutant levels were independently associated with reduced lung function in a 3-pollutant model. Higher concentrations of NO2 and particles smaller than 2.5 microm were associated with asthma-related missed school days, and higher NO2 concentrations were associated with asthma symptoms. CONCLUSION: Among inner-city children with asthma, short-term increases in air pollutant concentrations below the National Ambient Air Quality Standards were associated with adverse respiratory health effects. The associations with NO2 suggest that motor vehicle emissions may be causing excess morbidity in this population. Introduction: The short-term respiratory health effects of current air pollution levels in the United States have been the subject of inconsistent reports. Asthmatic children living in inner-city communities are a particularly vulnerable subgroup because of their underlying airways disease and their exposure to relatively high levels of motor vehicle emissions. Objective: To investigate the association between fluctuations in outdoor air pollution and asthma morbidity among inner-city asthmatic children. Methods: For two years, 937 moderate-to-severe asthmatic children in seven US urban communities performed two-week epochs of twice-daily home pulmonary function testing every six months. Asthma symptom data were collected every two months. Daily pollution measurements were obtained from the Aerometric Information Retrieval System database. The relationship of lung function and symptoms to fluctuations in pollutant concentrations was examined using time-series analysis. Results: Almost all air pollutant concentrations measured were below the National Ambient Air Quality Standards. In single-pollutant models, all five criteria pollutants examined were associated with reduced FEV1 and missed school days due to asthma. In three-pollutant models including O3, PM2.5, and CO as a surrogate for motor vehicle emissions, all three pollutants were independently associated with reduced lung function, and O3 and CO were associated with increased symptoms and missed school days due to asthma. Conclusion: Among inner-city asthmatic children, short-term increases in air pollutant concentrations were associated with adverse respiratory health outcomes. The associations with CO, likely acting as a surrogate for other pollutants, suggest that motor vehicle emissions may be causing excess morbidity among this vulnerable population.
