scholarly journals The number of passively smoked cigarettes and the risk of lung cancer among the inhabitants of the Świętokrzyskie Region (2010-2018)

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 344-350
Author(s):  
Robert Chudzik ◽  
Paweł Rybojad
Keyword(s):  
Lung Cancer ◽  
Air Pollution ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Road Transport ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Mental Illnesses ◽  
Published Data ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Increased Risk

Air purity is one of the factors affecting human health. Over the years, numerous scientific reports have provided us with evidence of the effects of air pollution on health. Along with the increase in pollution, the risk of respiratory and circulatory diseases in particular increases. The main pollutants are Airborne particulate matters (PM) which, depending on the size, vary between 2.5 and 10. Their presence is mainly related to the burning of fossil fuels. Another significant air pollutant is NO2, mainly related to road transport. It is believed that the long term exposure to NO2 could increase inflammation. The negative effect of air pollution is also associated with an increased frequency of strokes, exacerbations of mental illnesses and also with diseases of the digestive system. We analyzed the data available in the Polish National Cancer Registry (PNCR), Chief Inspectorate for Environmental Protection and Air Quality Guidelines, We checked air pollution by the means of  PM2.5 , PM10 and NO2 and thanks to mathematical equation delivered by Saskia C. van der Zee converted them into number of  passively smoked cigarettes. Above data we compared to lung cancer morbidity in Świętokrzyskie Region. Based on the latest published data, we can infer that in 2010-2018 each citizen of Świętokrzyskie Region smoked average 9,8 cigarettes a day +/- 2,3. The incidence of lung cancer is more or less the same number with a slight upward trend. After 61 years everyone in the exanimated region had 30 package-years of passive smoking and high risk of lung cancer. Air quality in Poland is not rewarding, exceeding WHO Guidelines 2005 recommendations translates into an increased risk of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases.

scholarly journals Association of Exposure to Fine-Particulate Air Pollution and Acidic Gases with Incidence of Nephrotic Syndrome

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (12) ◽  
pp. 2860 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shih-Yi Lin ◽  
Wu-Huei Hsu ◽  
Cheng-Li Lin ◽  
Cheng-Chieh Lin ◽  
Chih-Hsueh Lin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Nephrotic Syndrome ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Quality Monitoring ◽  
Air Quality Monitoring ◽  
Residential Areas ◽  
Acidic Gases ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Four Levels

Background: Air pollution has been associated with autoimmune diseases. Nephrotic syndrome is a clinical manifestation of immune-mediated glomerulopathy. However, the association between nephrotic syndrome and air pollution constituents remains unknown. We conducted this nationwide retrospective study to investigate the association between PM2.5 and nephrotic syndrome. Methods: We used the Longitudinal Health Insurance Database (LHID) and the Taiwan Air Quality-Monitoring Database (TAQMD). We combined and stratified the LHID and the TAQMD data by residential areas of insurants linked to nearby air quality-monitoring stations. Air pollutant concentrations were grouped into four levels based on quartile. Univariable and multivariable Cox proportional hazard regression models were applied. Findings: Relative to Q1-level SO2, subjects exposed to the Q4 level were associated with a 2.00-fold higher risk of nephrotic syndrome (adjusted HR = 2.00, 95% CI = 1.66–2.41). In NOx, relative to Q1 NOx concentrations, the adjusted HRs of nephrotic syndrome risk were 1.53 (95% CI = 1.23–1.91), 1.30 (95% CI = 1.03–1.65), and 2.08 (95% CI = 1.69–2.56) for Q2, Q3, and Q4 levels, respectively. The results revealed an increasing trend for nephrotic syndrome risk correlating with increasing levels of NO, NO2, and PM2.5 concentrations. Interpretation: High concentrations of PM2.5, NO, NO2, and SO2 are associated with increased risk of nephrotic syndrome.

scholarly journals The importance and challenge of carcinogenic air pollutants for health risk and impact assessment

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
P Mudu ◽  
R Pérez Velasco ◽  
I Zastenskaya ◽  
D Jarosinska
Keyword(s):  
Lung Cancer ◽  
Air Pollution ◽  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Sufficient Evidence ◽  
International Agency ◽  
Outdoor Air ◽  
Outdoor Air Pollution ◽  
Increased Risk

Abstract Along the years, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has classified many air pollutants components as carcinogens, including solvents, diesel engine exhaust, metals, such as chromium, nickel, arsenic, and cadmium. The IARC list of Group 1 carcinogens includes benzene, diesel exhaust, benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P, a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon [PAH]), indoor emissions from coal combustion, and 1,3-buta-diene. Sources, mainly combustion-related, that emit airborne carcinogens can be both in indoor and outdoor. In 2013, the IARC has classified outdoor air pollution and one of its major components, particulate matter (PM), as carcinogenic. In its evaluation, the IARC suggested sufficient evidence showing that exposure to outdoor air pollution and PM causes lung cancer and it noted that a positive association between such pollution and an increased risk of bladder cancer. The association between exposure to air pollutant and cancer risk has been investigated in cohort studies and the results are generally consistent, indicating that long-term exposure to air pollution can cause lung cancer and increase risks of cancer in other locations. The use of the information on carcinogenicity is fundamental to produce estimates to quantify risks and impacts on exposed population. WHO in several recent activities has addressed this issue. For example, it is also under consideration by various experts in the framework of the Task Force for Health (TFH) of the UNECE Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution. The discussion of this session will focus on the implications and the challenges to integrate toxicological and epidemiological evidence of identified air carcinogens in health in risk and impact assessment.

scholarly journals Has the ultra low emission zone in London improved air quality?

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (12) ◽  
pp. 124001
Author(s):  
Liang Ma ◽  
Daniel J Graham ◽  
Marc E J Stettler
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Road Transport ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Change Point Detection ◽  
Pollutant Emissions ◽  
Pollution Levels ◽  
Ex Post ◽  
Low Emission

Abstract London introduced the world’s most stringent emissions zone, the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ), in April 2019 to reduce air pollutant emissions from road transport and accelerate compliance with the EU air quality standards. Combining meteorological normalisation, change point detection, and a regression discontinuity design with time as the forcing variable, we provide an ex-post causal analysis of air quality improvements attributable to the London ULEZ. We observe that the ULEZ caused only small improvements in air quality in the context of a longer-term downward trend in London’s air pollution levels. Structural changes in nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and ozone (O3) concentrations were detected at 70% and 24% of the (roadside and background) monitoring sites and amongst the sites that showed a response, the relative changes in air pollution ranged from −9% to 6% for NO2, −5% to 4% for O3, and −6% to 4% for particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter less than 2.5 μm (PM2.5). Aggregating the responses across London, we find an average reduction of less than 3% for NO2 concentrations, and insignificant effects on O3 and PM2.5 concentrations. As other cities consider implementing similar schemes, this study implies that the ULEZ on its own is not an effective strategy in the sense that the marginal causal effects were small. On the other hand, the ULEZ is one of many policies implemented to tackle air pollution in London, and in combination these have led to improvements in air quality that are clearly observable. Thus, reducing air pollution requires a multi-faceted set of policies that aim to reduce emissions across sectors with coordination among local, regional and national government.

Vicious Cycle of Economic Growth, Pm2.5 and COVID-19 Case of G7 Countries

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rıdvan Karacan
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Air Pollution ◽  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Fine Particulate Matter ◽  
Panel Cointegration ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Population Exposure ◽  
Causality Analysis ◽  
G7 Countries

<p>Today, production is carried out depending on fossil fuels. Fossil fuels pollute the air as they contain high levels of carbon. Many studies have been carried out on the economic costs of air pollution. However, in the present study, unlike the former ones, economic growth's relationship with the COVID-19 virus in addition to air pollution was examined. The COVID-19 virus, which was initially reported in Wuhan, China in December 2019 and affected the whole world, has caused many cases and deaths. Researchers have been going on studying how the virus is transmitted. Some of these studies suggest that the number of virus-related cases increases in regions with a high level of air pollution. Based on this fact, it is thought that air pollution will increase the number of COVID-19 cases in G7 Countries where industrial production is widespread. Therefore, the negative aspects of economic growth, which currently depends on fossil fuels, is tried to be revealed. The research was carried out for the period between 2000-2019. Panel cointegration test and panel causality analysis were used for the empirical analysis. Particulate matter known as PM2.5[1] was used as an indicator of air pollution. Consequently, a positive long-term relationship has been identified between PM2.5 and economic growth. This relationship also affects the number of COVID-19 cases.</p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p>[1] "Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is an air pollutant that poses the greatest risk to health globally, affecting more people than any other pollutant (WHO, 2018). Chronic exposure to PM2.5 considerably increases the risk of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases in particular (WHO, 2018). For these reasons, population exposure to (outdoor or ambient) PM2.5 has been identified as an OECD Green Growth headline indicator" (OECD.Stat).</p>

scholarly journals Multiple air pollutant exposure and lung cancer in Tehran, Iran

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zahra Khorrami ◽  
Mohsen Pourkhosravani ◽  
Maysam Rezapour ◽  
Koorosh Etemad ◽  
Seyed Mahmood Taghavi-Shahri ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lung Cancer ◽  
Air Pollution ◽  
Cancer Incidence ◽  
Latent Profile Analysis ◽  
Negative Binomial ◽  
Profile Analysis ◽  
Positive Association ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
World Health ◽  
Lung Cancer Incidence

AbstractLung cancer is the most rapidly increasing malignancy worldwide with an estimated 2.1 million cancer cases in the latest, 2018 World Health Organization (WHO) report. The objective of this study was to investigate the association of air pollution and lung cancer, in Tehran, Iran. Residential area information of the latest registered lung cancer cases that were diagnosed between 2014 and 2016 (N = 1,850) were inquired from the population-based cancer registry of Tehran. Long-term average exposure to PM10, SO2, NO, NO2, NOX, benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, m-xylene, p-xylene, o-xylene (BTEX), and BTEX in 22 districts of Tehran were estimated using land use regression models. Latent profile analysis (LPA) was used to generate multi-pollutant exposure profiles. Negative binomial regression analysis was used to examine the association between air pollutants and lung cancer incidence. The districts with higher concentrations for all pollutants were mostly in downtown and around the railway station. Districts with a higher concentration for NOx (IRR = 1.05, for each 10 unit increase in air pollutant), benzene (IRR = 3.86), toluene (IRR = 1.50), ethylbenzene (IRR = 5.16), p-xylene (IRR = 9.41), o-xylene (IRR = 7.93), m-xylene (IRR = 2.63) and TBTEX (IRR = 1.21) were significantly associated with higher lung cancer incidence. Districts with a higher multiple air-pollution profile were also associated with more lung cancer incidence (IRR = 1.01). Our study shows a positive association between air pollution and lung cancer incidence. This association was stronger for, respectively, p-xylene, o-xylene, ethylbenzene, benzene, m-xylene and toluene.

scholarly journals Quantifying Air Pollutant Variations during COVID-19 Lockdown in a Capital City in Northwest China

Atmosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 788
Author(s):  
Rong Feng ◽  
Hongmei Xu ◽  
Zexuan Wang ◽  
Yunxuan Gu ◽  
Zhe Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Vehicle Emissions ◽  
Motor Vehicle ◽  
Northwest China ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Capital City ◽  
Air Pollution Control ◽  
Motor Vehicle Emissions

In the context of the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), strict lockdown policies were implemented to control nonessential human activities in Xi’an, northwest China, which greatly limited the spread of the pandemic and affected air quality. Compared with pre-lockdown, the air quality index and concentrations of PM2.5, PM10, SO2, and CO during the lockdown reduced, but the reductions were not very significant. NO2 levels exhibited the largest decrease (52%) during lockdown, owing to the remarkable decreased motor vehicle emissions. The highest K+ and lowest Ca2+ concentrations in PM2.5 samples could be attributed to the increase in household biomass fuel consumption in suburbs and rural areas around Xi’an and the decrease in human physical activities in Xi’an (e.g., human travel, vehicle emissions, construction activities), respectively, during the lockdown period. Secondary chemical reactions in the atmosphere increased in the lockdown period, as evidenced by the increased O3 level (increased by 160%) and OC/EC ratios in PM2.5 (increased by 26%), compared with pre-lockdown levels. The results, based on a natural experiment in this study, can be used as a reference for studying the formation and source of air pollution in Xi’an and provide evidence for establishing future long-term air pollution control policies.

scholarly journals Relationship between Air Pollutant Exposure and Gynecologic Cancer Risk

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (10) ◽  
pp. 5353
Author(s):  
Qiwei Yu ◽  
Liqiang Zhang ◽  
Kun Hou ◽  
Jingwen Li ◽  
Suhong Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Cancer Risk ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Gynecological Cancer ◽  
Gynecologic Cancer ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Ambient Air Pollution ◽  
Short Term Exposure ◽  
Increased Risk

Exposure to air pollution has been suggested to be associated with an increased risk of women’s health disorders. However, it remains unknown to what extent changes in ambient air pollution affect gynecological cancer. In our case–control study, the logistic regression model was combined with the restricted cubic spline to examine the association of short-term exposure to air pollution with gynecological cancer events using the clinical data of 35,989 women in Beijing from December 2008 to December 2017. We assessed the women’s exposure to air pollutants using the monitor located nearest to each woman’s residence and working places, adjusting for age, occupation, ambient temperature, and ambient humidity. The adjusted odds ratios (ORs) were examined to evaluate gynecologic cancer risk in six time windows (Phase 1–Phase 6) of women’s exposure to air pollutants (PM2.5, CO, O3, and SO2) and the highest ORs were found in Phase 4 (240 days). Then, the higher adjusted ORs were found associated with the increased concentrations of each pollutant (PM2.5, CO, O3, and SO2) in Phase 4. For instance, the adjusted OR of gynecological cancer risk for a 1.0-mg m−3 increase in CO exposures was 1.010 (95% CI: 0.881–1.139) below 0.8 mg m−3, 1.032 (95% CI: 0.871–1.194) at 0.8–1.0 mg m−3, 1.059 (95% CI: 0.973–1.145) at 1.0–1.4 mg m−3, and 1.120 (95% CI: 0.993–1.246) above 1.4 mg m−3. The ORs calculated in different air pollution levels accessed us to identify the nonlinear association between women’s exposure to air pollutants (PM2.5, CO, O3, and SO2) and the gynecological cancer risk. This study supports that the gynecologic risks associated with air pollution should be considered in improved public health preventive measures and policymaking to minimize the dangerous effects of air pollution.

scholarly journals Gender Differences in Association between Air Pollution and Daily Mortality in the Capital of the Green Lungs of Poland–Population-Based Study with 2,953,000 Person-Years of Follow-Up

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 2351
Author(s):  
Łukasz Kuźma ◽  
Krzysztof Struniawski ◽  
Szymon Pogorzelski ◽  
Hanna Bachórzewska-Gajewska ◽  
Sławomir Dobrzycki
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Gender Differences ◽  
Air Pollution ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
World Health ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Daily Mortality ◽  
Male Population ◽  
The Impact

(1) Introduction: air pollution is considered to be one of the main risk factors for public health. According to the European Environment Agency (EEA), air pollution contributes to the premature deaths of approximately 500,000 citizens of the European Union (EU), including almost 5000 inhabitants of Poland every year. (2) Purpose: to assess the gender differences in the impact of air pollution on the mortality in the population of the city of Bialystok—the capital of the Green Lungs of Poland. (3) Materials and Methods: based on the data from the Central Statistical Office, the number—and causes of death—of Białystok residents in the period 2008–2017 were analyzed. The study utilized the data recorded by the Provincial Inspectorate for Environmental Protection station and the Institute of Meteorology and Water Management during the analysis period. Time series regression with Poisson distribution was used in statistical analysis. (4) Results: A total of 34,005 deaths had been recorded, in which women accounted for 47.5%. The proportion of cardiovascular-related deaths was 48% (n = 16,370). An increase of SO2 concentration by 1-µg/m3 (relative risk (RR) 1.07, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.02–1.12; p = 0.005) and a 10 °C decrease of temperature (RR 1.03, 95% CI 1.01–1.05; p = 0.005) were related to an increase in the number of daily deaths. No gender differences in the impact of air pollution on mortality were observed. In the analysis of the subgroup of cardiovascular deaths, the main pollutant that was found to have an effect on daily mortality was particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 μm or less (PM2.5); the RR for 10-µg/m3 increase of PM2.5 was 1.07 (95% CI 1.02–1.12; p = 0.01), and this effect was noted only in the male population. (5) Conclusions: air quality and atmospheric conditions had an impact on the mortality of Bialystok residents. The main air pollutant that influenced the mortality rate was SO2, and there were no gender differences in the impact of this pollutant. In the male population, an increased exposure to PM2.5 concentration was associated with significantly higher cardiovascular mortality. These findings suggest that improving air quality, in particular, even with lower SO2 levels than currently allowed by the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines, may benefit public health. Further studies on this topic are needed, but our results bring questions whether the recommendations concerning acceptable concentrations of air pollutants should be stricter, or is there a safe concentration of SO2 in the air at all.

scholarly journals Use of electrochemical sensors for measurement of air pollution: correcting interference response and validating measurements

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 3575-3588 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eben S. Cross ◽  
Leah R. Williams ◽  
David K. Lewis ◽  
Gregory R. Magoon ◽  
Timothy B. Onasch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Lower Cost ◽  
Electrochemical Sensors ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Sensor System ◽  
Time Interval ◽  
High Dimensional Model Representation ◽  
Integrated Sensor ◽  
Mean Square Errors

Abstract. The environments in which we live, work, and play are subject to enormous variability in air pollutant concentrations. To adequately characterize air quality (AQ), measurements must be fast (real time), scalable, and reliable (with known accuracy, precision, and stability over time). Lower-cost air-quality-sensor technologies offer new opportunities for fast and distributed measurements, but a persistent characterization gap remains when it comes to evaluating sensor performance under realistic environmental sampling conditions. This limits our ability to inform the public about pollution sources and inspire policy makers to address environmental justice issues related to air quality. In this paper, initial results obtained with a recently developed lower-cost air-quality-sensor system are reported. In this project, data were acquired with the ARISense integrated sensor package over a 4.5-month time interval during which the sensor system was co-located with a state-operated (Massachusetts, USA) air quality monitoring station equipped with reference instrumentation measuring the same pollutant species. This paper focuses on validating electrochemical (EC) sensor measurements of CO, NO, NO2, and O3 at an urban neighborhood site with pollutant concentration ranges (parts per billion by volume, ppb; 5 min averages, ±1σ): [CO]  =  231 ± 116 ppb (spanning 84–1706 ppb), [NO]  =  6.1 ± 11.5 ppb (spanning 0–209 ppb), [NO2]  =  11.7 ± 8.3 ppb (spanning 0–71 ppb), and [O3]  =  23.2 ± 12.5 ppb (spanning 0–99 ppb). Through the use of high-dimensional model representation (HDMR), we show that interference effects derived from the variable ambient gas concentration mix and changing environmental conditions over three seasons (sensor flow-cell temperature  =  23.4 ± 8.5 °C, spanning 4.1 to 45.2 °C; and relative humidity  =  50.1 ± 15.3 %, spanning 9.8–79.9 %) can be effectively modeled for the Alphasense CO-B4, NO-B4, NO2-B43F, and Ox-B421 sensors, yielding (5 min average) root mean square errors (RMSE) of 39.2, 4.52, 4.56, and 9.71 ppb, respectively. Our results substantiate the potential for distributed air pollution measurements that could be enabled with these sensors.

scholarly journals Association between Air Pollution and the Development of Rheumatic Disease: A Systematic Review

2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gavin Sun ◽  
Glen Hazlewood ◽  
Sasha Bernatsky ◽  
Gilaad G. Kaplan ◽  
Bertus Eksteen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Rheumatic Diseases ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Population Sample ◽  
Case Control ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Case Control Studies ◽  
Mesh Terms ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
American Children

Objective. Environmental risk factors, such as air pollution, have been studied in relation to the risk of development of rheumatic diseases. We performed a systematic literature review to summarize the existing knowledge.Methods. MEDLINE (1946 to September 2016) and EMBASE (1980 to 2016, week 37) databases were searched using MeSH terms and keywords to identify cohort, case-control, and case cross-over studies reporting risk estimates for the development of select rheumatic diseases in relation to exposure of measured air pollutants (n=8). We extracted information on the population sample and study period, method of case and exposure determination, and the estimate of association.Results. There was no consistent evidence of an increased risk for the development of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) with exposure to NO2, SO2, PM2.5, or PM10. Case-control studies in systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases (SARDs) indicated higher odds of diagnosis with increasing PM2.5exposure, as well as an increased relative risk for juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) in American children <5.5 years of age. There was no association with SARDs and NO2exposure.Conclusion. There is evidence for a possible association between air pollutant exposures and the development of SARDs and JIA, but relationships with other rheumatic diseases are less clear.

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