scholarly journals Human Exposure Assessment in Air Pollution Systems

2002 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 497-513 ◽  
Author(s):  
Junfeng (Jim) Zhang ◽  
Paul J. Lioy
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Exposure Assessment ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Human Exposure ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Contact Boundary ◽  
Breathing Zone ◽  
Exposure Concentration ◽  
Human Respiratory Tract ◽  
Human Exposure Assessment

The air pollution problem can be depicted as a system consisting of several basic components: source, concentration, exposure, dose, and adverse effects. Exposure, the contact between an agent (e.g., an air pollutant) and a target (e.g., a human respiratory tract), is the key to linking the pollution source and health effects. Human exposure to air pollutants depends on exposure concentration and exposure duration. Exposure concentration is the concentration of a pollutant at a contact boundary, which usually refers to the human breathing zone. However, ambient concentrations of regulated pollutants at monitoring sites have been measured in practice to represent actual exposure. This can be a valid practice if the pollutants are ones that are predominantly generated outdoors and if the monitoring sites are appropriately selected to reflect where people are. Results from many exposure studies indicate that people are very likely to receive the greatest exposure to many toxic air pollutants not outside but inside places such as homes, offices, and automobiles. For many of these pollutants, major sources of exposure can be quite different from major sources of emission. This is because a large emission source can have a very small value of exposure effectiveness, i.e., the fraction of pollutant released from a source that actually reaches the human breathing zone. Exposure data are crucial to risk management decisions for setting priorities, selecting cost-effective approaches to preventing or reducing risks, and evaluating risk mitigation efforts. Measurement or estimate of exposure is essential but often inadequately addressed in environmental epidemiologic studies. Exposure can be quantified using direct or indirect measurement methods, depending upon the purpose of exposure assessment and the availability of relevant data. The rapidly developing battery and electronic technologies as well as advancements in molecular biology are expected to accelerate the improvement of current methods and the development of new methods for future exposure assessment.

Intra-urban variability of air pollution in Windsor, Ontario—Measurement and modeling for human exposure assessment

2008 ◽  
Vol 106 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda J. Wheeler ◽  
Marc Smith-Doiron ◽  
Xiaohong Xu ◽  
Nicolas L. Gilbert ◽  
Jeffrey R. Brook
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Exposure Assessment ◽  
Human Exposure ◽  
Human Exposure Assessment

scholarly journals The first 1000 days of life: traffic-related air pollution and development of wheezing and asthma in childhood. A systematic review of birth cohort studies

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandra Bettiol ◽  
Elena Gelain ◽  
Erika Milanesio ◽  
Federica Asta ◽  
Franca Rusconi
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Air Pollution ◽  
Cohort Studies ◽  
Exposure Assessment ◽  
Birth Cohort ◽  
Early Life ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract Background The first 1000 days of life -including pregnancy and the first 2 years after birth- represent a critical window for health interventions. This systematic review aimed to summarize the evidence on the relationship between traffic-related air pollutants exposure in the first 1000 days of life and the development of wheezing and asthma, with a particular focus on windows of exposure. Methods Medline and Embase were searched from January 2000 to May 2020 to retrieve population-based birth-cohort studies, including registries, providing quantitative information on the association between exposure to traffic-related air pollutants during pregnancy or early life, and the risk of developing wheezing and asthma in childhood. Screening and selection of the articles were completed independently by three reviewers. The quality of studies was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale. Results Out of 9681 records retrieved, 26 studies from 21 cohorts were included. The most common traffic-related air pollutant markers were particulate matter (PM) and nitric oxides (NOx). The variability in terms of pollutants, exposure assessment methods, and exposure levels chosen to present the results did not allow a meta-analysis. Exposure to PM and NOx in pregnancy (10 cohorts) was consistently associated with an increased risk of asthma development, while the association with wheezing development was unclear. The second trimester of pregnancy seemed to be particularly critical for asthma risk. As for exposure during early life (15 cohorts), most studies found a positive association between PM (7/10 studies) and NOx (11/13 studies) and the risk of asthma development, while the risk of wheezing development was controversial. The period of postnatal exposure, however, was less precisely defined and a partial overlap between the period of exposure measurement and that of outcome development was present in a consistent number of studies (14 out of 15) raising doubts on the associations found. Conclusions Traffic-related air pollution during pregnancy is associated with an increased risk of asthma development among children and adolescents. The relationship between exposure in the first two years of life and the development of wheezing and asthma needs to be confirmed in studies with more precise exposure assessment.

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 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.

scholarly journals Analysis of Temporal Variations of Air Pollutant Concentrations in Ogoni Area, Niger Delta Region, Nigeria

2021 ◽  
pp. 63-73
Author(s):  
B. Yorkor ◽  
T. G. Leton ◽  
J. N. Ugbebor
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Temporal Variability ◽  
Niger Delta ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Temporal Variations ◽  
Time Of Day ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Pollutant Concentrations ◽  
Hourly Data ◽  
Air Pollutant Concentrations

This study investigated the temporal variations of air pollutant concentrations in Ogoni area, Niger Delta, Nigeria. The study used hourly data measured over 8 hours for 12 months at selected locations within the area. The analyses were based on time series and time variations techniques in Openair packages of R programming software. The variations of air pollutant concentrations by time of day and days of week were simulated. Hours of the day, days of the week and monthly variations were graphically simulated. Variations in the mean concentrations of air pollutants by time were determined at 95 % confidence intervals. Sulphur dioxide (SO2), Nitrogen dioxide (NO2), ground level Ozone (O3) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations exceeded permissible standards. Air pollutant concentrations showed increase in January, February, November and December compared to other months. Simulation showed that air pollutants varied significantly by hours-of-the-day and days-of-the-week and months-of-the-year. Analysis of temporal variability revealed that air pollutant concentrations increased during weekdays and decreased during weekends. The temporal variability of air pollutants in Ogoni area showed that anthropogenic activities were the main sources of air pollution in the area, therefore further studies are required to determine air pollutant dispersion pattern and evaluation the potential sources of air pollution in the area.

scholarly journals Associations of Ambient Air Pollutants and Meteorological Factors With COVID-19 Transmission in 31 Chinese Provinces: A Time Series Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 58 ◽  
pp. 004695802110602
Author(s):  
Han Cao ◽  
Bingxiao Li ◽  
Tianlun Gu ◽  
Xiaohui Liu ◽  
Kai Meng ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Relative Humidity ◽  
Wind Velocity ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Meteorological Factors ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Pollutant Concentrations ◽  
Air Pollutant Concentrations

Evidence regarding the effects of environmental factors on COVID-19 transmission is mixed. We aimed to explore the associations of air pollutants and meteorological factors with COVID-19 confirmed cases during the outbreak period throughout China. The number of COVID-19 confirmed cases, air pollutant concentrations, and meteorological factors in China from January 25 to February 29, 2020, (36 days) were extracted from authoritative electronic databases. The associations were estimated for a single-day lag as well as moving averages lag using generalized additive mixed models. Region-specific analyses and meta-analysis were conducted in 5 selected regions from the north to south of China with diverse air pollution levels and weather conditions and sufficient sample size. Nonlinear concentration–response analyses were performed. An increase of each interquartile range in PM2.5, PM10, SO2, NO2, O3, and CO at lag4 corresponded to 1.40 (1.37–1.43), 1.35 (1.32–1.37), 1.01 (1.00–1.02), 1.08 (1.07–1.10), 1.28 (1.27–1.29), and 1.26 (1.24–1.28) ORs of daily new cases, respectively. For 1°C, 1%, and 1 m/s increase in temperature, relative humidity, and wind velocity, the ORs were 0.97 (0.97–0.98), 0.96 (0.96–0.97), and 0.94 (0.92–0.95), respectively. The estimates of PM2.5, PM10, NO2, and all meteorological factors remained significantly after meta-analysis for the five selected regions. The concentration–response relationships showed that higher concentrations of air pollutants and lower meteorological factors were associated with daily new cases increasing. Higher air pollutant concentrations and lower temperature, relative humidity and wind velocity may favor COVID-19 transmission. Controlling ambient air pollution, especially for PM2.5, PM10, NO2, may be an important component of reducing risk of COVID-19 infection. In addition, as winter months are arriving in China, the meteorological factors may play a negative role in prevention. Therefore, it is significant to implement the public health control measures persistently in case another possible pandemic.

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