Impact of acute exposure to air pollution on the cardiorespiratory performance of military firemen.
The objective of the present study was to determine the impact of acute short-term exposure to air pollution on the cardiorespiratory performance of military firemen living and working in the city of Guarujá, São Paulo, Brazil. Twenty-five healthy non-smoking firemen aged 24 to 45 years had about 1 h of exposure to low and high levels of air pollution. The tests consisted of two phases: phase A, in Bertioga, a town with low levels of air pollution, and phase B, in Cubatão, a polluted town, with a 7-day interval between phases. The volunteers remained in the cities (Bertioga/Cubatão) only for the time required to perform the tests. Cumulative load 10 +/- 2 min-long exertion tests were performed on a treadmill, consisting of a 2-min stage at a load of 7 km/h, followed by increasing exertion of 1 km h-1 min-1 until the maximum individual limit. There were statistically significant differences (P < 0.05) in anaerobic threshold (AT) between Cubatão (35.04 +/- 4.91 mL kg-1 min-1) and Bertioga (36.98 +/- 5.62 mL kg-1 min-1; P = 0.01), in the heart rate at AT (AT HR; Cubatão 152.08 +/- 14.86 bpm, Bertioga 157.44 +/- 13.64 bpm; P = 0.001), and in percent maximal oxygen consumption at AT (AT%VO2max; Cubatão 64.56 +/- 6.55%, Bertioga 67.40 +/- 5.35%; P = 0.03). However, there were no differences in VO2max, maximal heart rate or velocity at AT (ATvel) observed in firemen between towns. The acute exposure to pollutants in Cubatão, SP, caused a significant reduction in the performance at submaximal levels of physical exertion.
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Escola de Educação Física, Polícia Militar do Estado de São Paulo, Av. Cruzeiro do Sul 548, 03033-020 São Paulo, SP, Brazil. raulsanto@polmil.sp.gov.br
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D000328:Adult; D000397:Air Pollution / Q000009:adverse effects*; D001938:Brazil; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005080:Exercise Test; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008451:Maximal Voluntary Ventilation / Q000187:drug effects; D008875:Middle Aged; D008889:Military Personnel; D010101:Oxygen Consumption / Q000187:drug effects; D005082:Physical Exertion / Q000187:drug effects*; D012129:Respiratory Function Tests / Q000706:statistics & numerical data