Air Pollution and Daily Clinic Visits for Migraine in a Subtropical City: Taipei, Taiwan

Abstract

This study was undertaken to determine whether there was an association between air pollutant levels and daily clinic visits for migraine in Taipei, Taiwan. Daily clinic visits for migraine and ambient air pollution data for Taipei were obtained for the period 2006–2011. The relative risk of clinic visits for migraine was estimated using a case-crossover approach, controlling for weather variables, day of the week, seasonality, and long-term time trends. In the single-pollutant models, on warm days (>23°C) statistically significant positive associations were found for increased rate of migraine occurrence and levels of particulate matter (PM₁₀), sulfur dioxide (SO₂), nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), carbon monoxide (CO), and ozone (O₃). On cool days (<23°C), all pollutants were significantly associated with increased migraine visits except CO and SO₂. For the two-pollutant models, O₃ and NO₂ were significant for higher rate of migraine visits in combination with each of the other four pollutants on cool days. On warm days, CO remained statistically significant in all two-pollutant models. This study provides evidence that higher levels of ambient air pollutants enhance the risk of clinic visits for migraine.