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PM2.5 exposure associated with increases in total and cardiopulmonary mortality in North China
May 08, 2012

Peking University, May 8, 2012: Recently, Dr. Huang Wei, associate professor from the Center for Environment and Health of PKU, and her research team reported that exposure to PM2.5 is associated with excess risk of total and cardiopulmonary mortality in North China, the risk is greater in the cold months. And they also found out that secondary components, combustion species and transition metals in PM2.5 appeared most responsible for the increased risk. The research findings were published on American Journal of Epidemiology, a top international periodical in Epidemiology.


Epidemiologic research has indicated the association between ambient fine particulate matter (PM < 2.5 μm in aerodynamic diameter, PM2.5) and cardiopulmonary mortality and morbidity.

 

According to the assessment conducted by World Health Organization (WHO) on the burden of disease due to air pollution, more than 2 million premature deaths each year can be attributed to the effects of urban outdoor air pollution and indoor air pollution (caused by the burning of solid fuels). More than half of this disease burden is borne by the populations of developing countries. Air quality guidelines have been published by WHO firstly in 1987, and they were revised regularly based on systemic review of emerging air pollution health effect evidences. In 2005, WHO released a global update with concentration limits for selected air pollutants including PM2.5.

 

As the largest and most populated country in Asia, China experienced overall worsening air quality in the past decades, along with its rapid economic development. Considering various source-apportioned PM2.5 pollution patterns across geographic locations in China, “assessing differential toxicity and health impact of PM2.5 mass and species in Chinese population would fill the knowledge gaps between Western and Asian studies”, according to Dr. Huang, “such endeavor would also have significant public health and air quality management implications to Chinese population”.


The researchers conducted a time-series analysis to examine seasonal variation of mortality risk in association with particulate matter less than 2.5 μm in aerodynamic diameter (PM2.5) and chemical species in Xi’an, China, using daily air pollution, all-cause and cause-specific mortality data (2004-2008) (American Journal of Epidemiology, 2012. 175(6): 556-566.). In this analyses, increases of 2.29% (95% Confidence Interval, CI: 0.83, 3.76) for all-cause mortality and 3.08% (95% CI: 0.94, 5.26) for cardiovascular mortality were associated with an IQR increase of 103.0 μg/m3 in lagged 1-2 day PM2.5 exposure. Stronger effects were observed for elderly (≥65 yrs), male and cardiovascular diseases groups. Secondary components (sulfate and ammonium), combustion species (elemental carbon, sulfur, chlorine), and transition metals (chromium, lead, nickel, and zinc) appeared most responsible for increased risk, particularly in the cold months.

 

This study was supported by China State Ministry of Environmental Protection (Grants 201009032 and 200809109), and Ministry of Science and Technology (Grant 2008AA062503).

 


Paper cited:
Seasonal Variation of Chemical Species Associated with Short-term Mortality Effects of PM2.5 in Xi’an, A Central City in China. American Journal of Epidemiology. 2012. 175(6): 556-566.

 

Dr. Huang Wei graduated from Department of Environmental Health at Harvard School of Public Health in 2003, majored in Environmental Health. After graduation, Dr Huang joined the Health Effects Institute based in Boston, overseeing “Air Pollution Health Effects Studies in Asia (PAPA)”. Dr Huang now is an associate professor at the Center for Environment and Health, Peking University (PKU). Since joined PKU in 2007, Dr Huang has taken leading roles in initiating multi-panel studies examining air pollution cardio-respiratory effects in cardiovascular elderly, elementary school children, young and healthy subjects, and diabetic subjects. Dr Huang also conducted time-series analyses of acute mortality effects focusing on photochemical pollution in the Pearl Delta River (PRD) of southern China, and on fine particulate (PM2.5) and chemical species in Xi’an of northern China. Dr Huang’s research interests are biological mechanisms of ambient particulate associated cardio-respiratory effects at population and individual levels. Dr Huang has publications in American Journal of Medical Association, American Journal of Epidemiology, Environmental Health Perspectives, Environmental Science and Technology, and Science of the Total Environment, since 2007.

 

Reported by: Zhang Jiang
Source: PKU News(Chinese)

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