Acute respiratory effects of livestock related air pollution on a panel of COPD patients

Background: In India, biomass fuel is burned in many homes under inefficient conditions, leading to a complex milieu of particulate matter and environmental toxins known as household air pollution (HAP). Pregnant women are particularly vulnerable as they and their fetus may suffer from adverse consequences of HAP. Fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) is a noninvasive, underutilized tool that can serve as a surrogate for airway inflammation. We evaluated the prevalence of respiratory illness, using pulmonary questionnaires and FeNO measurements, among pregnant women in rural India who utilize biomass fuel as a source of energy within their home. Methods: We prospectively studied 60 pregnant women in their 1st and 2nd trimester residing in villages near Nagpur, Central India. We measured FeNO levels in parts per billion (ppb), St. George’s Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ-C) scores, and the Modified Medical Research Council (mMRC) Dyspnea Scale. We evaluated the difference in the outcome distributions between women using biomass fuels and those using liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) using two-tailed t-tests. Results: Sixty-five subjects (32 in Biomass households; 28 in LPG households; 5 unable to complete) were enrolled in the study. Age, education level, and second-hand smoke exposure were comparable between both groups. FeNO levels were higher in the Biomass vs. LPG group (25.4 ppb vs. 8.6 ppb; p-value = 0.001). There was a difference in mean composite SGRQ-C score (27.1 Biomass vs. 10.8 LPG; p-value < 0.001) including three subtotal scores for Symptoms (47.0 Biomass vs. 20.2 LPG; p-value< 0.001), Activity (36.4 Biomass vs. 16.5 LPG; p-value < 0.001) and Impact (15.9 Biomass vs. 5.2 LPG; p-value < 0.001). The mMRC Dyspnea Scale was higher in the Biomass vs. LPG group as well (2.9 vs. 0.5; p < 0.001). Conclusion: Increased FeNO levels and higher dyspnea scores in biomass-fuel-exposed subjects confirm the adverse respiratory effects of this exposure during pregnancy. More so, FeNO may be a useful, noninvasive biomarker of inflammation that can help better understand the physiologic effects of biomass smoke on pregnant women. In the future, larger studies are needed to characterize the utility of FeNO in a population exposed to HAP.

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Adaptation to short-term respiratory effects of ozone in men exposed repeatedly

Journal of Applied Physiology ◽

10.1152/jappl.1977.43.1.82 ◽

1977 ◽

Vol 43 (1) ◽

pp. 82-85 ◽

Cited By ~ 59

Author(s):

J. D. Hackney ◽

W. S. Linn ◽

J. G. Mohler ◽

C. R. Collier

Keyword(s):

Air Pollution ◽

Physiological Responses ◽

Controlled Environment ◽

Acute Effects ◽

Short Term ◽

Respiratory Effects ◽

Ambient Pollution ◽

Environment Chamber ◽

Air Pollution Episodes ◽

Pollution Episodes

To investigate whether adaptation which modifies some acute effects of ozone (O3) exposure can develop in humans, six male volunteers with respiratory hyperreactivity were exposed in a controlled environment chamber to 0.5 ppm O3 2h/day for 4 successive days under conditions stimulating ambient pollution exposures. One subject showed little measurable response, while five showed function decrement on exposure days 1–3 which was largely reversed by day 4. Symptom responses generally paralleled the physiological responses. These results suggest that at least some humans adapt to O3 exposure at concentrations occurring in severe community air pollution episodes, to the extent that obvious acute respiratory effects are prevented. Other adverse effects of O3 may not be prevented by this adaptation.

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Winter Is Coming: A Socio-Environmental Monitoring and Spatiotemporal Modelling Approach for Better Understanding a Respiratory Disease

ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information ◽

10.3390/ijgi7110432 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 7 (11) ◽

pp. 432 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Lukas Marek ◽

Malcolm Campbell ◽

Michael Epton ◽

Simon Kingham ◽

Malina Storer

Keyword(s):

Air Pollution ◽

Census Data ◽

Hospital Admissions ◽

Chronic Obstructive ◽

Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ◽

Disease Patterns ◽

Copd Patients ◽

Composition Factors ◽

Individual Composition ◽

Modelling Approach

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease is a progressive lung disease affecting the respiratory function of every sixth New Zealander and over 300 million people worldwide. In this paper, we explored how the combination of social, demographical and environmental conditions (represented by increased winter air pollution) affected hospital admissions due to COPD in an urban area of Christchurch (NZ). We juxtaposed the hospitalisation data with dynamic air pollution data and census data to investigate the spatiotemporal patterns of hospital admissions. Spatial analysis identified high-risk health hot spots both overall and season specific, exhibiting higher rates in winter months not solely due to air pollution, but rather as a result of its combination with other factors that initiate deterioration of breathing, increasing impairments and lead to the hospitalisation of COPD patients. From this we found that socioeconomic deprivation and air pollution, followed by the age and ethnicity structure contribute the most to the increased winter hospital admissions. This research shows the continued importance of including both individual (composition) and area level (composition) factors when examining and analysing disease patterns.

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