title: Is household air pollution a risk factor for eye disease?
abstract: In developing countries, household air pollution (HAP) resulting from the inefficient burning of coal and biomass (wood, charcoal, animal dung and crop residues) for cooking and heating has been linked to a number of negative health outcomes, mostly notably respiratory diseases and cancers. While ocular irritation has been associated with HAP, there are sparse data on adverse ocular outcomes that may result from acute and chronic exposures. We consider that there is suggestive evidence, and biological plausibility, to hypothesize that HAP is associated with some of the major blinding, and painful, eye conditions seen worldwide. Further research on this environmental risk factor for eye diseases is warranted.
authors.affiliation: Wilmer Eye Institute, Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, MD 21287, USA. shwest@jhmi.edu.
authors.forename: Sheila K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: West
authors.forename: Michael N
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Bates
authors.forename: Jennifer S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Debra A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Schaumberg
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Heather
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Adair-Rohani
authors.forename: Dong Feng
authors.initials: DF
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Houmam
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Araj
mesh_terms: D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000633:toxicity*; D016902:Air Pollution, Indoor; D018533:Biomass; D003031:Coal; D003906:Developing Countries; D005128:Eye Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D012307:Risk Factors
chemical_list: D000393:Air Pollutants; D003031:Coal