Objective: In Philadelphia, a scrapyard fire generated PM2.5 concentrations >1000 μg/m. We assessed whether this was associated with pediatric emergency department visits for respiratory diagnoses.
Design/methods: Retrospective observational study using electronic health record data from a local, academic pediatric hospital.
Results: Compared to the two-week period before the fire, patients living directly north of the fire (downwind) had a significant difference in all asthma diagnoses (OR = 3.02, P = 0.03); asthma and upper respiratory infection (OR = 17.3, P = 0.01); overall admissions (OR = 3.04, P = 01); asthma admissions (OR = 4.45, P = .01); and asthma and upper respiratory infection admissions (OR = 15.0, P = 0.01). We did not observe any significant differences among visits or admissions from patients residing in other adjacent zip codes.
Conclusion: A localized, transient increase in PM2.5 was associated with increased pediatric emergency department visits for asthma among patients living downwind of the fire.