Even when particulate matter levels in the air are below WHO guidelines, there is still an association between increasing air pollution levels and people visiting hospital emergency departments.

In particular, the study discovered associations between air pollution and skin disorders, breathing problems, and trauma cases.

Dr. Rossetto emergency medicine resident stated, “We know that air pollution is harmful to health, particularly in terms of breathing and lung disorders, and this is likely to have an impact on our health care services. On the other hand, nothing is known about how variations in air pollution affect the general number of patients in the emergency room”.

Increased Emergency Department Visits Due to Air Pollution

Dr. Rossetto collected information on patients admitted to the emergency room at Careggi University Hospital in Florence from 2019 to 2022 in collaboration with Dr. Alessio Gnerucci of the Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Florence, Italy. A total of 307,279 patients visited the emergency room (1^✔ ✔Trusted Source
Increase in air pollution corresponds with more patients at the hospital emergency department

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).

They compared this with data on the daily levels of particulate matter of less than 2.5 micrometres in size (PM2.5) and particulate matter of less than 10 micrometres (PM10) near patients’ home addresses for up to 30 days before they went to hospital.

The researchers found an increase in daily patients in the emergency department of 10-15% in the few days following an increase in levels of PM2.5 and PM10.

In particular, cases of trauma, breathing difficulties and skin conditions increased in the days following rises in air pollution. Cases of trauma linked to air pollution were generally in younger patients, while in older patients (over 65) breathing difficulties linked to pollution were more common.

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Dr Rossetto said: “In this study, we were able to estimate pollution in the air where patients live, and this revealed a strong connection between higher levels of particulate matter and visits to the emergency department.

“At our hospital most trauma patients have been involved in road traffic collisions. Traffic is also a primary driver of increased air pollution in urban areas”.

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Role of Air Quality in Patient Outcomes

It is likely that heavy traffic is directly responsible for the increase in trauma cases and indirectly for more patients presenting with breathing difficulties linked to air pollution.

“This means we’re seeing more patients with breathing difficulties at a time when the emergency department is already under stress with more trauma cases, with potentially worse outcomes for such patients.”

The researchers say that more research is needed to see if a similar relationship between air pollution and emergency department admissions exists in other hospitals, for example, this study does not include children, who can be more susceptible to the effects of air pollution.

The researchers hope to carry out similar studies looking at the impact of levels of other pollutants in the air and weather patterns on visits to the emergency department, not only in terms of overall workload but also in relation to specific diseases.

Dr Barbra Backus, an emergency physician in Rotterdam, said: “This study adds to existing evidence that air pollution, even at concentrations within WHO guidelines, is harmful to our health and our health services. Understanding this link could allow hospitals to prepare for surges in patient numbers and take action to reduce overcrowding in the emergency department. Hopefully further research will provide even more information on this topic.

“However, if we want to protect our health and reduce the burden on hospitals, we need to do all we can to minimise emissions and reduce exposure to air pollution.”

Reference:

1. Increase in air pollution corresponds with more patients at the hospital emergency department- (https:eusem.org/news/982-press-release-increase-in-air-pollution-corresponds-with-more-patients-at-the-hospital-emergency-department)

Source-Eurekalert