Long term exposure to air pollution linked to coronary events International team of researchers, coordinated by the University of Utrecht, the Netherlands, set out to study the effect of long term exposure to airborne pollutants on acute coronary events (heart attack and unstable angina) in 11 cohorts participating in the European Study of Cohorts for Air Pollution Effects (ESCAPE). The study involved over 100,000 people with no history of heart disease enrolled from 1997 to 2007 and followed for an average of 11.5 years. Mathematical models were used to estimate concentrations of air pollution from particulate matter at each participants residential address. A total of 5,157 participants experienced coronary events during the follow-up period. After taking account of several other risk factors, including other illness, smoking, and socioeconomic factors, the researchers found that a 5 μg/m3 increase in PM2.5particulate matter was associated with a 13% increased risk of coronary events and a 10μg/m3 increase in PM10 particulate matter was associated with a 12% increased risk of coronary events. Positive associations were detected below the current annual European limit of 25 μg/m3 for PM2.5 and below 40 μg/m3 for PM10 and positive but non-significant associations were found with other pollutants. Further analyses did not alter the results significantly. Our study suggests an association between long term exposure to particulate matter and incidence of coronary events, say the authors.
Posted on: Wed, 22 Jan 2014 12:17:53 +0000