Air pollution and hospital admissions for respiratory diseases in the subequatorial Amazon: a time series approach.
The objective of the study is to evaluate the effect of the daily variation in concentrations of fine particulate matter (diameter less than 2.5 microm--PM2.5) resulting from the burning of biomass on the daily number of hospitalizations of children and elderly people for respiratory diseases, in Alta Floresta and Tangará da Serra in the Brazilian Amazon in 2005. This is an ecological time series study that uses data on daily number of hospitalizations of children and the elderly for respiratory diseases, and estimated concentration of PM2.5. In Alta Floresta, the percentage increases in the relative risk (%RR) of hospitalization for respiratory diseases in children were significant for the whole year and for the dry season with 3-4 day lags. In the dry season these measurements reach 6% (95%CI: 1.4-10.8). The associations were significant for moving averages of 3-5 days. The %RR for the elderly was significant for the current day of the drought, with a 6.8% increase (95%CI: 0.5-13.5) for each additional 10 microg/m3 of PM2.5. No associations were verified for Tangará da Serra. The PM2.5 from the burning of biomass increased hospitalizations for respiratory diseases in children and the elderly.
Universidade do Estado de Mato Grosso, Av. Tancredo Neves 1095, Cáceres, Brazil. eliane.ignotti@pq.cnpq.br
Eliane
E
Ignotti
Sandra de Souza
Sde S
Hacon
Washington Leite
WL
Junger
Dennys
D
Mourão
Karla
K
Longo
Saulo
S
Freitas
Paulo
P
Artaxo
Antônio Carlos Monteiro Ponce de
AC
Leon
D000368:Aged; D000397:Air Pollution / Q000009:adverse effects*; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005390:Fires; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D052638:Particulate Matter / Q000009:adverse effects; D012120:Respiration Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D012621:Seasons
D052638:Particulate Matter