Short-Term Effects of Fine Particulate Air Pollution on Hospital Admissions for Respiratory Diseases: A Case-Crossover Study in a Tropical City

Abstract

This study was undertaken to determine whether there was a correlation between fine particles (PM_2.5) levels and hospital admissions for respiratory diseases in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Hospital admissions for respiratory diseases including pneumonia, asthma, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and ambient air pollution data for Kaohsiung were obtained for the period 2006–2010. The relative risk (RR) of hospital admissions for respiratory diseases was estimated using a case-crossover approach, controlling for weather variables, day of the week, seasonality, and chronic time trends. For the single-pollutant model (without adjustment for other pollutants), increased number of admissions for respiratory diseases were significantly associated with higher PM_2.5 levels only on cool days (<25°C), with an interquartile range rise associated with a 50 (95% CI% = 45–55%), 40% (95% CI = 25–58%), and 46% (95% CI = 36–57%) elevation in frequency of admissions for pneumonia, asthma, and COPD, respectively. In the two-pollutant models, PM_2.5 levels remained significant even controlling for sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, or ozone on cool days. This study provides evidence that higher levels of PM_2.5 increase the risk of hospital admissions for respiratory diseases in Taiwan.