Today we look at a literature review into the risk of strokes, the second most common cause of death, from a short term exposure to air pollution. Results indicate that one or two day exposure to air pollution, particularly PM2.5 and NO2, have a clear association with strokes or mortality from stroke. Many studies of health impacts from air pollution come from research in developed countries although the worst air pollution tends to occur in developing countries which as a consequence suffer the greatest health impacts, as demonstrated in this study.
Key Quotes:
“Outdoor air pollution is an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease throughout the world, with particulate air pollution alone responsible for over three million deaths each year”
“Stroke remains the second most common cause of death and third most important cause of disability worldwide.” “There was a positive association between all gaseous and particulate air pollutants and admission to hospital for stroke or mortality from stroke, with the weakest association seen for ozone”
“The association between PM2.5 and stroke was evident on the day of the event (lag 0) and was present for up to two days (lag 2) before the event.”
“The association between gaseous pollutants and stroke was related to lag in exposure (days), with the strongest associations evident for pollutant concentrations on the day of the event”
“the association between PM10 and acute cardiovascular events is primarily driven by the PM2.5 fraction. This fraction is enriched with ultrafine particles derived from the combustion of fossil fuels, which toxicology studies have suggested are the most potent component of particulate matter.”
“Gaseous and particulate air pollutants have a marked and close temporal association with admissions to hospital for stroke or mortality from stroke“
“Only a few studies originated from low or middle income countries and yet these countries experience the highest levels of air pollution and bear a disproportionate burden of global stroke mortality and morbidity.”
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