The association between ambient air pollution and daily mortality in Beijing after the 2008 olympics: a time series study

PLoS One. 2013 Oct 18;8(10):e76759. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0076759. eCollection 2013.

Abstract

In recent decades, ambient air pollution has been an important public health issue in Beijing, but little is known about air pollution and health effects after the 2008 Beijing Olympics. We conduct a time-series analysis to evaluate associations between daily mortality (nonaccidental, cardiovascular and respiratory mortality) and the major air pollutants (carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter less than 10 µm in aerodynamic diameter) in Beijing during the two years (2009,2010) after the 2008 Beijing Olympics. We used generalized additive model to analyze relationship between daily mortality and air pollution. In single air pollutant model with two-day moving average concentrations of the air pollutants, increase in their interquartile range (IQR) associated with percent increase in nonaccidental mortality, 2.55 percent [95% confidence interval (CI): 1.99, 3.11] for CO, 2.54 percent (95% CI: 2.00, 3.08) for NO2 and 1.80 percent (95% CI: 1.21, 2.40) for PM10, respectively; increases in the IQR of air pollutant concentrations associated with percent increase in cardiovascular mortality, 2.88 percent (95% CI: 2.10,3.65) for CO, 2.63 percent (95% CI: 1.87, 3.39) for NO2 and 1.72 percent (95% CI: 0.88, 2.55) for PM10, respectively; and increase in IQR of air pollutant concentrations associated with respiratory mortality, 2.39 percent (95% CI: 0.68, 4.09) for CO, 1.79 percent (95% CI: 0.11, 3.47) for NO2 and 2.07 percent (95% CI: 0.21, 3.92) for PM10, respectively. We used the principal component analysis to avoid collinearity of varied air pollutants. In addition, the association stratified by sex and age was also examined. Ambient air pollution remained a significant contributor to nonaccidental and cardiopulmonary mortalities in Beijing during 2009,2010.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Air Pollutants / analysis*
  • Air Pollutants / chemistry
  • Air Pollution / analysis*
  • Algorithms
  • Asian People
  • Carbon Monoxide / analysis
  • Cardiovascular Diseases / ethnology
  • Cardiovascular Diseases / mortality*
  • Child
  • Child, Preschool
  • China / epidemiology
  • Environmental Exposure / analysis*
  • Geography
  • Humans
  • Incidence
  • Infant, Newborn
  • Middle Aged
  • Models, Theoretical
  • Nitrogen Dioxide / analysis
  • Particle Size
  • Particulate Matter / analysis
  • Particulate Matter / chemistry
  • Sports
  • Time Factors
  • Young Adult

Substances

  • Air Pollutants
  • Particulate Matter
  • Carbon Monoxide
  • Nitrogen Dioxide

Grants and funding

This study was funded by Gong-Yi Program of China Ministry of Environmental Protection (200909016, 201209046, 201309045). URL:http://kjs.mep.gov.cn/gyxhykyzx/The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preperation of the manuscript.