title: Ambient air pollution, weather changes, and outpatient visits for allergic conjunctivitis: A retrospective registry study.
abstract: Allergic conjunctivitis is a common problem that significantly impairs patients' quality of life. Whether air pollution serves as a risk factor for the development of allergic conjunctivitis remains elusive. In this paper, we assess the relationship between air pollutants and weather conditions with outpatient visits for allergic conjunctivitis. By using a time-series analysis based on the largest dataset ever assembled to date, we found that the number of outpatient visits for allergic conjunctivitis was significantly correlated with the levels of NO2, O3, and temperature, while its association with humidity was statistically marginal. No associations between PM10, PM2.5, SO2, or wind velocity and outpatient visits were seen. Subgroup analyses showed that sex seemed to modify the effects of humidity on outpatient visits for allergic conjunctivitis, but not for NO2, O3, or temperature. People younger than 40 were found to be susceptible to changes of all four parameters, while those older than 40 were only consistently affected by NO2 levels. Our findings revealed that higher levels of ambient NO2, O3, and temperature increase the chances of outpatient visits for allergic conjunctivitis. Ambient air pollution and weather changes may contribute to the worsening of allergic conjunctivitis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Eye, and ENT Hospital, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, 83 Road Fenyang, Shanghai, China.|Eye Institute of Xiamen University, Road Xiang'an Nan, Xiamen, China.|Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02114, USA.
authors.forename: Jiaxu
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.affiliation: Eye Institute of Xiamen University, Road Xiang'an Nan, Xiamen, China.
authors.forename: Taoling
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Zhong
authors.affiliation: Eye Institute of Xiamen University, Road Xiang'an Nan, Xiamen, China.
authors.forename: Huili
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Shanghai Key Laboratory of Meteorology and Health, 951 Road Jinxiu, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: Jianming
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Shanghai Key Laboratory of Meteorology and Health, 951 Road Jinxiu, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: Xiaofang
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.affiliation: Shanghai Key Laboratory of Meteorology and Health, 951 Road Jinxiu, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: Zhe
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Mu
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Eye, and ENT Hospital, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, 83 Road Fenyang, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.affiliation: Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02114, USA.
authors.forename: Alireza
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mashaghi
authors.affiliation: Eye Institute of Xiamen University, Road Xiang'an Nan, Xiamen, China.
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Science, Westminster College, Fulton, MO 65251, USA.
authors.forename: Mengxi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.affiliation: Eye Institute of Xiamen University, Road Xiang'an Nan, Xiamen, China.
authors.forename: Qiyuan
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Eye, and ENT Hospital, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, 83 Road Fenyang, Shanghai, China.|State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Institutes of Brain Science, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.|Myopia Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Health of China, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: Xinghuai
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Eye Institute of Xiamen University, Road Xiang'an Nan, Xiamen, China.
authors.forename: Zuguo
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Eye, and ENT Hospital, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, 83 Road Fenyang, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: Jianjiang
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Xu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000397:Air Pollution; D000554:Ambulatory Care Facilities / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D003233:Conjunctivitis, Allergic / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006813:Humidity; D008297:Male; D008685:Meteorological Concepts; D008875:Middle Aged; D009585:Nitrogen Dioxide / Q000032:analysis; D009819:Office Visits / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010126:Ozone / Q000032:analysis; D052638:Particulate Matter; D012042:Registries; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013458:Sulfur Dioxide / Q000032:analysis; D013696:Temperature
chemical_list: D052638:Particulate Matter; D013458:Sulfur Dioxide; D010126:Ozone; D009585:Nitrogen Dioxide