Assessment of Low-Level Air Pollution and Cardiovascular Incidence in Gdansk, Poland: Time-Series Cross-Sectional Analysis.

(1) Background: More than 1.8 million people in the European Union die every year as a result of CVD, accounting for 36% of all deaths with a large proportion being premature (before the age of 65). There are more than 300 different risk factors of CVD, known and air pollution is one of them. The aim of this study was to investigate whether daily cardiovascular mortality was associated with air pollutants and meteorological conditions in an urban environment with a low level of air pollution. (2) Methods: Data on daily incidence of strokes and myocardial infarctions in the city of Gdansk were obtained from the National Health Fund (NHF) and covered the period from 1 January 2014 to 31 December 2018. Data on the level of pollution, i.e., SO2, NO, NO2, NOx, CO, PM10, PM2.5, CO2, O3 and meteorological conditions came from the foundation: Agency of Regional Air Quality Monitoring in the Gdansk metropolitan area (ARMAG). Using these data, we calculated mean values with standard deviation (SD) and derived the minimum and maximum values and interquartile range (IQR). Time series regression with Poisson distribution was used in statistical analysis. (4) Results: Stroke incidence is significantly affected by an increase in concentrations of NO, NO2 and NOx with RRs equal to 1.019 (95%CI: 1.001-1.036), 1.036 (95%CI: 1.008-1.064) and 1.017 (95%CI: 1.000-1.034) for every increase in IQR by 14.12, 14.62 and 22.62 µg/m3, respectively. Similarly, myocardial infarction incidence is significantly affected by an increase in concentrations of NO, NO2 and NOx with RRs equal to 1.030 (95%CI: 1.011-1.048), 1.053 (95%CI: 1.024-1.082) and 1.027 (95%CI: 1.010-1.045) for every increase in IQR by 14.12, 14.62 and 22.62 µg/m3, respectively. Both PM10 and PM2.5 were positively associated with myocardial infarction incidence. (5) Conclusions: In this time-series cross-sectional study, we found strong evidence that support the hypothesis that transient elevations in ambient PM2.5, PM10, NO2, SO2 and CO are associated with higher relative risk of ischemic stroke and myocardial infarction incidents.

Properties of Particulate Matter in the Air of the Wieliczka Salt Mine and Related Health Benefits for Tourists.

This study aimed to evaluate the mass concentration of size-resolved (PM1, PM2.5, PM4, PM10, PM100) particulate matter (PM) in the Wieliczka Salt Mine located in southern Poland, compare them with the concentrations of the same PM fractions in the atmospheric air, and estimate the dose of dry salt aerosol inhaled by the mine visitors. Measurements were conducted for 2 h a day, simultaneously inside (tourist route, passage to the health resort, health resort) and outside the mine (duty-room), for three days in the summer of 2017 using DustTrak DRX devices (optical method). The highest average PM concentrations were recorded on the tourist route (54-81 µg/m3), while the lowest was in the passage to the health resort (49-62 µg/m3). At the same time, the mean outdoor PM concentrations were 14-20 µg/m3. Fine particles constituting the majority of PM mass (68-80%) in the mine originated from internal sources, while the presence of coarse particles was associated with tourist traffic. High PM deposition factors in the respiratory tract of children and adults estimated for particular mine chambers (0.58-0.70), the predominance of respirable particles in PM mass, and the high content of NaCl in PM composition indicate high health benefits for mine visitors.

Inhalation risk to PAHs and BTEX during barbecuing: The role of fuel/food type and route of exposure.

The manuscript presents an innovative and holistic approach to quantifying PAHs and BTEX emissions from the grilling process and indicates a novel driven-toxicity-based solution to recognize health effects related to BBQ emissions. The exposure scenario includes the type of grilling device, food type, and individual attitudes, but also a keen understanding of the broad health implications related to the gaseous/particulate PAHs emission, or age-related effects. The calculated incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) associated with the exposure to PAH congeners and BTEX indicates an unacceptable level in the case of charcoal and briquette grilling with the highest values for professional cooks. The sum of 15 PAH concentrations in grilled foods was highest for meat grilling over charcoal briquettes - 382,020.39 ng/m3 and lowest for meat grilling on a gas grill - 1442.16 ng/m3. The emissions of BTEX from lump charcoal grilling were 130 times higher compared to the gaseous grill. In all considered scenarios lump-charcoal and charcoal briquettes grilling derive the ILCR above the 10-4, indicating negative effects of traditional grills on human health. The paper completes knowledge of wide-ranging health implications associated with BBQs, a topic that is almost completely unaddressed among the scientific community and policymakers.

Risk of bronchi obstruction among non-smokers--review of environmental factors affecting bronchoconstriction.

In order to find relationship between exposure to traffic and traffic-related air pollutants, pulmonary function tests and a detailed questionnaire were conducted among 3997 selected inhabitants of Warsaw (Poland) and 988 residents of rural areas. Advanced statistical analyses (including GRM models, correspondence analysis and parametrical tests) have been completed. Statistically significant differences between average percentages of predicted values of pulmonary function parameters were found. Among urban area inhabitants the values of FEV1, MEF50 and FEV1/FVC were statistically significant (p<0.05) lower compared with the residents of rural areas (in the non-smoking group this differences were strong (p<0.001)). General linear regression models indicated that residence in the vicinity of urban busy roads fosters a decrease of spirometric parameters. Physical activity however has a positive effect on pulmonary function (exemplified by FEV1) and allows to reduce part of the negative health effects of traffic-related emissions. The results of the presented study demonstrate that long-term residence under the influence of heavy traffic and high concentrations of traffic-related air pollutants reduces respiratory function parameters, which may result in increased bronchial hyperresponsiveness.