Sources and variability of inhalable road dust particles in three European cities

Elevated concentrations of ambient particulate air pollution have been associated with increased hospital admissions for cardiovascular disease. Whether high concentrations of ambient particles can trigger the onset of acute myocardial infarction (MI), however, remains unknown. We interviewed 772 patients with MI in the greater Boston area between January 1995 and May 1996 as part of the Determinants of Myocardial Infarction Onset Study. Hourly concentrations of particle mass <2.5 microm (PM(2.5)), carbon black, and gaseous air pollutants were measured. A case-crossover approach was used to analyze the data for evidence of triggering. The risk of MI onset increased in association with elevated concentrations of fine particles in the previous 2-hour period. In addition, a delayed response associated with 24-hour average exposure 1 day before the onset of symptoms was observed. Multivariate analyses considering both time windows jointly revealed an estimated odds ratio of 1.48 associated with an increase of 25 microg/m(3) PM(2.5) during a 2-hour period before the onset and an odds ratio of 1.69 for an increase of 20 microg/m(3) PM(2.5) in the 24-hour period 1 day before the onset (95% CIs 1.09, 2.02 and 1.13, 2.34, respectively). The present study suggests that elevated concentrations of fine particles in the air may transiently elevate the risk of MIs within a few hours and 1 day after exposure. Further studies in other locations are needed to clarify the importance of this potentially preventable trigger of MI. Show more

Long-term exposure to particulate matter air pollution has been associated with increased cardiopulmonary mortality in the USA. We aimed to assess the relation between traffic-related air pollution and mortality in participants of the Netherlands Cohort study on Diet and Cancer (NLCS), an ongoing study. We investigated a random sample of 5000 people from the full cohort of the NLCS study (age 55-69 years) from 1986 to 1994. Long-term exposure to traffic-related air pollutants (black smoke and nitrogen dioxide) was estimated for the 1986 home address. Exposure was characterised with the measured regional and urban background concentration and an indicator variable for living near major roads. The association between exposure to air pollution and (cause specific) mortality was assessed with Cox's proportional hazards models, with adjustment for potential confounders. 489 (11%) of 4492 people with data died during the follow-up period. Cardiopulmonary mortality was associated with living near a major road (relative risk 1.95, 95% CI 1.09-3.52) and, less consistently, with the estimated ambient background concentration (1.34, 0.68-2.64). The relative risk for living near a major road was 1.41 (0.94-2.12) for total deaths. Non-cardiopulmonary, non-lung cancer deaths were unrelated to air pollution (1.03, 0.54-1.96 for living near a major road). Long-term exposure to traffic-related air pollution may shorten life expectancy. Show more