scholarly journals Quantifying the impact of the modifiable areal unit problem when estimating the health effects of air pollution

2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
Duncan Lee ◽  
Chris Robertson ◽  
Colin Ramsay ◽  
Kate Pyper
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Modifiable Areal Unit Problem ◽  
Areal Unit ◽  
The Impact

scholarly journals A Preliminary Attempt at the Identification and Financial Estimation of the Negative Health Effects of Urban and Industrial Air Pollution Based on the Agglomeration of Gdańsk

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Piotr O. Czechowski ◽  
Piotr Dąbrowiecki ◽  
Aneta Oniszczuk-Jastrząbek ◽  
Michalina Bielawska ◽  
Ernest Czermański ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Causal Relation ◽  
Financial Burden ◽  
Incidence Rates ◽  
Industrial Air Pollution ◽  
Urban Populations ◽  
General Regression ◽  
The Impact

This article marks the first attempt on Polish and European scale to identify the relationship between urban and industrial air pollution and the health conditions of urban populations, while also estimating the financial burden of incidence rates among urban populations for diseases selected in the course of this study as having a causal relation with such incidence. This paper presents the findings of a pilot study based on general regression models, intended to explore air pollutants with a statistically relevant impact on the incidence of selected diseases within the Agglomeration of Gdańsk in the years 2010–2018. In discussing the city’s industrial functions, the study takes into consideration the existence within its limits of a large port that services thousands of ships every year, contributing substantially to the volume of emissions (mainly NOx and PM) to the air. The causes considered include the impact of air pollution, seasonality, land- and sea-based emissions, as well as their mutual interactions. All of the factors and their interactions have a significant impact (p ≤ 0.05) on the incidence of selected diseases in the long term (9 years). The source data were obtained from the Polish National Health Fund (NFZ), the Agency for Regional Monitoring of Atmosphere in the Agglomeration of Gdańsk (ARMAAG), the Chief Inspectorate of Environmental Protection (GIOŚ), and the Port of Gdańsk Harbourmaster. The study used 60 variables representing the diseases, classified into 19 groups. The resulting findings were used to formulate a methodology for estimating the financial burden of the negative health effects of air pollution for the agglomeration, and will be utilized as a reference point for further research in selected regions of Poland.

scholarly journals Air Pollution as a Cause of Obesity: Micro-Level Evidence from Chinese Cities

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (21) ◽  
pp. 4296 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhiming Yang ◽  
Qianhao Song ◽  
Jing Li ◽  
Yunquan Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Particle Size ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Multinomial Logit Model ◽  
Ordinary Least Squares ◽  
Adverse Health Effects ◽  
Adverse Health ◽  
Individual Vulnerability ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Impact

Chinese air pollution is obviously increasing, and the government makes efforts to strengthen air pollution treatment. Although adverse health effects gradually emerge, research determining individual vulnerability is limited. This study estimated the relationship between air pollution and obesity. Individual information of 13,414 respondents from 125 cities is used in the analysis. This study employs ordinary least squares (OLS) and multinomial logit model (m-logit) to estimate the impact of air pollution on obesity. We choose different air pollution and Body Mass Index (BMI) indicators for estimation. Empirical results show Air Quality Index (AQI) is significantly positively associated with the BMI score. As AQI adds one unit, the BMI score increases 0.031 (SE = 0.002; p < 0.001). The influence coefficients of particle size smaller than 2.5 μm (PM2.5), particle size smaller than 10 μm (PM10), carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), ozone (O3), and sulfur dioxide (SO2) to the BMI score are 0.034 (SE = 0.002; p < 0.001), 0.023 (SE = 0.001; p < 0.001), 0.52 (SE = 0.095; p < 0.001), 0.045 (SE = 0.004; p < 0.001), 0.021 (SE = 0.002; p < 0.001), 0.008 (SE = 0.003; p = 0.015), respectively. Generally, air pollution has an adverse effect on body weight. CO is the most influential pollutant, and female, middle-aged, and low-education populations are more severely affected. The results confirm that the adverse health effects of air pollution should be considered when making the air pollution policies. Findings also provide justification for health interventions, especially for people with obesity.

scholarly journals Acute Health Impacts of the Southeast Asian Transboundary Haze Problem—A Review

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (18) ◽  
pp. 3286 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cheong ◽  
Ngiam ◽  
Morgan ◽  
Pek ◽  
Tan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Air Pollution ◽  
Southeast Asia ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Forest Fires ◽  
Epidemiological Studies ◽  
Southeast Asian ◽  
International Strategy ◽  
Regional Air Quality ◽  
The Impact

Air pollution has emerged as one of the world’s largest environmental health threats, with various studies demonstrating associations between exposure to air pollution and respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. Regional air quality in Southeast Asia has been seasonally affected by the transboundary haze problem, which has often been the result of forest fires from “slash-and-burn” farming methods. In light of growing public health concerns, recent studies have begun to examine the health effects of this seasonal haze problem in Southeast Asia. This review paper aims to synthesize current research efforts on the impact of the Southeast Asian transboundary haze on acute aspects of public health. Existing studies conducted in countries affected by transboundary haze indicate consistent links between haze exposure and acute psychological, respiratory, cardiovascular, and neurological morbidity and mortality. Future prospective and longitudinal studies are warranted to quantify the long-term health effects of recurrent, but intermittent, exposure to high levels of seasonal haze. The mechanism, toxicology and pathophysiology by which these toxic particles contribute to disease and mortality should be further investigated. Epidemiological studies on the disease burden and socioeconomic cost of haze exposure would also be useful to guide policy-making and international strategy in minimizing the impact of seasonal haze in Southeast Asia.

scholarly journals Indoor Air Pollution with Fine Particles and Implications for Workers’ Health in Dental Offices: A Brief Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 599
Author(s):  
Diana Mariana Cocârţă ◽  
Mariana Prodana ◽  
Ioana Demetrescu ◽  
Patricia Elena Maria Lungu ◽  
Andreea Cristiana Didilescu
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Indoor Air Pollution ◽  
Fine Particles ◽  
Dental Health ◽  
Indoor Pollution ◽  
Dental Practitioners ◽  
Dental Offices ◽  
The Impact

(1) Background: Indoor air pollution can affect the well-being and health of humans. Sources of indoor pollution with particulate matter (PM) are outdoor particles and indoor causes, such as construction materials, the use of cleaning products, air fresheners, heating, cooking, and smoking activities. In 2017, according to the Global Burden of Disease study, 1.6 million people died prematurely because of indoor air pollution. The health effects of outdoor exposure to PM have been the subject of both research and regulatory action, and indoor exposure to fine particles is gaining more and more attention as a potential source of adverse health effects. Moreover, in critical situations such as the current pandemic crisis, to protect the health of the population, patients, and staff in all areas of society (particularly in indoor environments, where there are vulnerable groups, such as people who have pre-existing lung conditions, patients, elderly people, and healthcare professionals such as dental practitioners), there is an urgent need to improve long- and short-term health. Exposure to aerosols and splatter contaminated with bacteria, viruses, and blood produced during dental procedures performed on patients rarely leads to the transmission of infectious agents between patients and dental health care staff if infection prevention procedures are strictly followed. On the other hand, in the current circumstances of the pandemic crisis, dental practitioners could have an occupational risk of acquiring coronavirus disease as they may treat asymptomatic and minimally symptomatic patients. Consequently, an increased risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection could occur in dental offices, both for staff that provide dental healthcare and for other patients, considering that many dental procedures produce droplets and dental aerosols, which carry an infectious virus such as SARS-CoV-2. (2) Types of studies reviewed and applied methodology: The current work provides a critical review and evaluation, as well as perspectives concerning previous studies on health risks of indoor exposure to PM in dental offices. The authors reviewed representative dental medicine literature focused on sources of indoor PM10 and PM2.5 (particles for which the aerodynamic diameter size is respectively less than 10 and 2.5 μm) in indoor spaces (paying specific attention to dental offices) and their characteristics and toxicological effects in indoor microenvironments. The authors also reviewed representative studies on relations between the indoor air quality and harmful effects, as well as studies on possible indoor viral infections acquired through airborne and droplet transmission. The method employed for the research illustrated in the current paper involved a desk study of documents and records relating to occupational health problems among dental health care providers. In this way, it obtained background information on both the main potential hazards in dentistry and infection risks from aerosol transmission within dental offices. Reviewing this kind of information, especially that relating to bioaerosols, is critical for minimizing the risk to dental staff and patients, particularly when new recommendations for COVID-19 risk reduction for the dental health professional community and patients attending dental clinics are strongly needed. (3) Results: The investigated studies and reports obtained from the medical literature showed that, even if there are a wide number of studies on indoor human exposure to fine particles and health effects, more deep research and specific studies on indoor air pollution with fine particles and implications for workers’ health in dental offices are needed. As dental practices are at a higher risk for hazardous indoor air because of exposure to chemicals and microbes, the occupational exposures and diseases must be addressed, with special attention being paid to the dental staff. The literature also documents that exposure to fine particles in dental offices can be minimized by putting prevention into practice (personal protection barriers such as masks, gloves, and safety eyeglasses) and also keeping indoor air clean (e.g., high-volume evacuation, the use of an air-room-cleaning system with high-efficiency particulate filters, and regularly maintaining the air-conditioning and ventilation systems). These kinds of considerations are extremely important as the impact of indoor pollution on human health is no longer an individual issue, with its connections representing a future part of sustainability which is currently being redefined. These kinds of considerations are extremely important, and the authors believe that a better situation in dentistry needs to be developed, with researchers in materials and dental health trying to understand and explain the impact of indoor pollution on human health.

scholarly journals Overcoming inefficiencies arising due to the impact of the modifiable areal unit problem on single-aggregation disease maps

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Tuson ◽  
Matthew Yap ◽  
Mei Ruu Kok ◽  
Bryan Boruff ◽  
Kevin Murray ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Resource Allocation ◽  
Hospital Admissions ◽  
Disease Mapping ◽  
Extensive Literature ◽  
Modifiable Areal Unit Problem ◽  
Areal Unit ◽  
Resource Allocation Efficiency ◽  
Fine Resolution ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Single Set

Abstract Background In disease mapping, fine-resolution spatial health data are routinely aggregated for various reasons, for example to protect privacy. Usually, such aggregation occurs only once, resulting in ‘single-aggregation disease maps’ whose representation of the underlying data depends on the chosen set of aggregation units. This dependence is described by the modifiable areal unit problem (MAUP). Despite an extensive literature, in practice, the MAUP is rarely acknowledged, including in disease mapping. Further, despite single-aggregation disease maps being widely relied upon to guide distribution of healthcare resources, potential inefficiencies arising due to the impact of the MAUP on such maps have not previously been investigated. Results We introduce the overlay aggregation method (OAM) for disease mapping. This method avoids dependence on any single set of aggregate-level mapping units through incorporating information from many different sets. We characterise OAM as a novel smoothing technique and show how its use results in potentially dramatic improvements in resource allocation efficiency over single-aggregation maps. We demonstrate these findings in a simulation context and through applying OAM to a real-world dataset: ischaemic stroke hospital admissions in Perth, Western Australia, in 2016. Conclusions The ongoing, widespread lack of acknowledgement of the MAUP in disease mapping suggests that unawareness of its impact is extensive or that impact is underestimated. Routine implementation of OAM can help avoid resource allocation inefficiencies associated with this phenomenon. Our findings have immediate worldwide implications wherever single-aggregation disease maps are used to guide health policy planning and service delivery.

scholarly journals Reducing bias in multivariate analyses due to the modifiable areal unit problem.

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Tuson ◽  
Mei Ruu Kok ◽  
Matthew Yap ◽  
Alistair Vickery ◽  
Bryan Boruff ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Service ◽  
Service Utilization ◽  
Health Service Utilization ◽  
Association Studies ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Modifiable Areal Unit Problem ◽  
Areal Unit ◽  
Catchment Areas ◽  
The Future ◽  
The Impact

IntroductionThe Modifiable Areal Unit Problem (MAUP) arises from the aggregation of data organized by spatially defined boundaries. Aggregated values are influenced by the shape (zone effect) and scale of the aggregated units. Aggregations of the same data using different zones or scales can give different analytical results, none reliable. Objectives and ApproachUsing population-level administrative health data in Western Australia, the objectives were to: accurately measure the association between health service utilization and demographic, socio-economic, and service accessibility variables; and develop models to accurately forecast areas of high health service utilization into the future. Multiple zone designs and aggregation scales were used to examine the impact of MAUP in association studies. These zone designs and scales were then used in all-subset model selection processes, combined with repeated k-fold cross-validation, to generate forecast maps of areas having high future rates of health service utilization. ResultsThe impact of the MAUP and methods to reduce this bias in association studies will be presented, for both simple and complex model designs. Maps indicating gradients of predicted probabilities of high rate of health service demand in the future can be used to optimize the placement of services, through the use of catchment areas based on road-network travel distance and population distributions. Conclusion/ImplicationsThe impact of the MAUP on the analysis of spatially-aggregated data has been considered intractable. However, methods to reduce the impact of the MAUP can improve policy and planning decisions based on such studies.

scholarly journals Applicability of the Environmental Relative Moldiness Index for Quantification of Residential Mold Contamination in an Air Pollution Health Effects Study

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Kamal ◽  
Janet Burke ◽  
Stephen Vesper ◽  
Stuart Batterman ◽  
Alan Vette ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Respiratory Health ◽  
Living Room ◽  
Systematic Bias ◽  
Dust Collection ◽  
Floor Dust ◽  
Highly Correlated ◽  
Mold Exposure ◽  
The Impact

The Near-Road Exposures and Effects of Urban Air Pollutants Study (NEXUS) investigated the impact of exposure to traffic-related air pollution on the respiratory health of asthmatic children in Detroit, Michigan. Since indoor mold exposure may also contribute to asthma, floor dust samples were collected in participants homes (n=112) to assess mold contamination using the Environmental Relative Moldiness Index (ERMI). The repeatability of the ERMI over time, as well as ERMI differences between rooms and dust collection methods, was evaluated for insights into the application of the ERMI metric. ERMI values for the standard settled floor dust samples had a mean±standard deviation of14.5±7.9, indicating high levels of mold contamination. ERMI values for samples collected from the same home 1 to 7 months apart (n=52) were consistent and without systematic bias. ERMI values for separate bedroom and living room samples were highly correlated (r=0.69,n=66). Vacuum bag dust ERMI values were lower than for floor dust but correlated (r=0.58,n=28). These results support the use of the ERMI to evaluate residential mold exposure as a confounder in air pollution health effects studies.

scholarly journals Expected Health Effects of Reduced Air Pollution from COVID-19 Social Distancing

Atmosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 951
Author(s):  
Steve Cicala ◽  
Stephen P. Holland ◽  
Erin T. Mansur ◽  
Nicholas Z. Muller ◽  
Andrew J. Yates
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Electricity Consumption ◽  
The United States ◽  
Time Frame ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
Mobility Data ◽  
Premature Deaths ◽  
The Impact ◽  
At Home

The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in stay-at-home policies and other social distancing behaviors in the United States in spring of 2020. This paper examines the impact that these actions had on emissions and expected health effects through reduced personal vehicle travel and electricity consumption. Using daily cell phone mobility data for each U.S. county, we find that vehicle travel dropped about 40% by mid-April across the nation. States that imposed stay-at-home policies before March 28 decreased travel slightly more than other states, but travel in all states decreased significantly. Using data on hourly electricity consumption by electricity region (e.g., balancing authority), we find that electricity consumption fell about 6% on average by mid-April with substantial heterogeneity. Given these decreases in travel and electricity use, we estimate the county-level expected improvements in air quality, and, therefore, expected declines in mortality. Overall, we estimate that, for a month of social distancing, the expected premature deaths due to air pollution from personal vehicle travel and electricity consumption declined by approximately 360 deaths, or about 25% of the baseline 1500 deaths. In addition, we estimate that CO2 emissions from these sources fell by 46 million metric tons (a reduction of approximately 19%) over the same time frame.

scholarly journals Redefining The Modifiable Areal Unit Problem Within Spatial Econometrics, The Case of the Scale Problem

Equilibrium ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 111-132 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michał Bernard Pietrzak
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Econometrics ◽  
Research Problem ◽  
Modifiable Areal Unit Problem ◽  
Spatial Analyses ◽  
Scale Problem ◽  
Areal Unit ◽  
Correct Analysis ◽  
Aggregation Problem ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Interpretation Problem

The paper focuses on the issue of the modifiable areal unit problem (MAUP), which is frequently discussed within spatial econometrics. This issue concerns the changeability of the characteristics of the analysed phenomena under the impact of the change in the composition of territorial units. The article indicates four conditions which need to be fulfilled if the correctness of spatial analyses is to be maintained. Also, the paper introduces the concept of the quasi composition of regions (QCR). It was defined as a set of particular compositions of territorial units for subsequent aggregation scales. Particular compositions of territorial units are selected in a way that allows a correct analysis within the undertaken research problem to be conducted. The chief asset of the paper is the proposal to redefine the concept of the modifiable areal unit problem. Both the scale problem and the aggregation problem were linked to the accepted quasi composition of regions. The redefinition of the concept is vital for the research conducted since analysing phenomena based on compositions of territorial units which are excluded from the quasi composition of regions leads to the formulation of incorrect conclusions. Within the undertaken research problem there exists only one particular composition of territorial units which allows the identification and description of the dependence for analysed phenomena. Within the considered modifiable areal unit problem two potential problems were defined and they can occur while making spatial analyses. The first is the final areal interpretation problem (FAIP) that occurs when the characteristics of phenomena or the dependence are designated for too large region. The other issue is the aggregation scale interpretation problem (ASIP). It occurs when a quasi composition of regions is enlarged by an aggregation scale where the correctness of the results of the undertaken research problem is not preserved. In both cases it is possible to reach a situation where the obtained characteristics will be deprived of the cognitive value.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document