Journal article
Childhood asthma acute primary care visits, traffic, and traffic-related pollutants
Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association (1995), v 64(5), pp 561-567
04 May 2014
PMID: 24941704
Featured in Collection : UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
Abstract
Previous studies have found associations between traffic-related air pollution and asthma exacerbation in children, where exacerbations were measured according to emergency department visits and hospital admissions. Fewer studies have been undertaken that look at asthma exacerbations in a less severe primary care setting. Therefore, the authors sought to examine the associations between childhood asthma exacerbations, measured as acute visits to a primary care setting, and vehicular-traffic measures in a population of children aged 18 and under in the metropolitan Atlanta area. Statistical tests for differences of mean monthly visits for members with traffic measures above the median compared with below the median and for the upper quartile compared with the lower quartile were conducted. We also compared the odds of having one or more visits in a month for those who lived closer to a major roadway were compared with those who lived farther (greater than 300 m) from a major roadway. Poisson general linear modeling was used to determine associations between daily levels of acute visits for childhood asthma and traffic-related pollutants (zinc, EC [elemental carbon], and PM10 and PM2.5 [particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter of <= 10 and <= 2.5 mu m, respectively]) for different levels of traffic and distance measures. This analysis found that both larger traffic volumes and smaller distances to the nearest major roadway were positively and significantly associated with larger numbers of childhood asthma visits, when compared with less traffic and larger distances. Our findings point to motor vehicle traffic as an important contributor to childhood asthma exacerbations.
Implications:
Previous studies have found associations between traffic-related air pollution and asthma exacerbation in children. However, these studies were mainly conducted in emergency department or hospital admission settings; little is known regarding less acute health effects. This analysis of the association between vehicular traffic measures and childhood asthma in a primary care setting suggests that motor vehicle traffic is a contributor to less acute asthma episodes in children. The present analysis of traffic-related air pollutants and childhood asthma were less conclusive, likely due to methods limitations outlined in the paper. The implication is that further evidence of adverse respiratory health effects in children due to motor vehicle traffic can be found in a primary care setting and similar studies should be considered.
Metrics
Details
- Title
- Childhood asthma acute primary care visits, traffic, and traffic-related pollutants
- Creators
- Amber H. Sinclair - Southeast Health DistrictSteven Melly - Harvard UniversityDennis Tolsma - Southeast Health DistrictJohn Spengler - Harvard UniversityLauren Perkins - Southeast Health DistrictAnnette Rohr - Electric Power Research InstituteRonald Wyzga - Electric Power Research Institute
- Publication Details
- Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association (1995), v 64(5), pp 561-567
- Publisher
- Taylor & Francis
- Number of pages
- 7
- Grant note
- Electric Power Research Institute, Inc.
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Urban Health Collaborative
- Web of Science ID
- WOS:000334906900007
- Scopus ID
- 2-s2.0-84900345808
- Other Identifier
- 991021875341804721
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- Collaboration types
- Domestic collaboration
- Web of Science research areas
- Engineering, Environmental
- Environmental Sciences
- Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences