Associations between lung-deposited dose of particulate matter and culture-positive pulmonary tuberculosis pleurisy.

Epidemiological studies identified the relationship between air pollution and pulmonary tuberculosis. Effects of lung-deposited dose of particulate matter (PM) on culture-positive pulmonary tuberculosis remain unclear. This study investigates the association between lung-deposited dose of PM and pulmonary tuberculosis pleurisy. A case-control study of subjects undergoing pleural effusion drainage of pulmonary tuberculosis (case) and chronic heart failure (control) was conducted. Metals and biomarkers were quantified in the pleural effusion. The air pollution exposure was measured and PM deposition in the head, tracheobronchial, alveolar region, and total lung region was estimated by Multiple-path Particle Dosimetry (MPPD) Model. We performed multiple logistic regression to examine the associations of these factors with the risk of tuberculosis. We observed that 1-µg/m3 increase in PM10 was associated with 1.226-fold increased crude odds ratio (OR) of tuberculosis (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.023-1.469, p<0.05), 1-µg/m3 increase in PM2.5-10 was associated with 1.482-fold increased crude OR of tuberculosis (95% CI: 1.048-2.097, p < 0.05), 1-ppb increase in NO2 was associated with 1.218-fold increased crude OR of tuberculosis (95% CI: 1.025-1.447, p < 0.05), and 1-ppb increase in O3 was associated with 0.735-fold decreased crude OR of tuberculosis (95% CI: 0.542 0.995). We observed 1-µg/m3 increase in PM deposition in head and nasal region was associated with 1.699-fold increased crude OR of tuberculosis (95% CI: 1.065-2.711, p < 0.05), 1-µg/m3 increase in PM deposition in tracheobronchial region was associated with 1.592-fold increased crude OR of tuberculosis (95% CI: 1.095-2.313, p < 0.05), 1-µg/m3 increase in PM deposition in alveolar region was associated with 3.981-fold increased crude OR of tuberculosis (95% CI: 1.280-12.386, p < 0.05), and 1-µg/m3 increase in PM deposition in total lung was associated with 1.511-fold increased crude OR of tuberculosis (95% CI: 1.050-2.173, p < 0.05). The results indicate that particle deposition in alveolar region could cause higher risk of pulmonary tuberculosis pleurisy than deposition in other lung regions.

Association Between Air Pollution and Lung Lobar Emphysema in COPD.

The development of emphysema has been linked to air pollution; however, the association of air pollution with the extent of lobar emphysema remains unclear. This study examined the association of particulate matter <2.5 µm in aerodynamic diameters (PM2.5) (≤2.5 µm), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and ozone (O3) level of exposure with the presence of emphysema in 86 patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Exposure to the air pollution estimated using the land-use regression model was associated with lung function, BODE (a body mass index, degree of obstruction, dyspnea severity, and exercise capacity index) quartiles, and emphysema measured as low-attenuation areas on high-resolution CT (HR-CT) lung scans. Using paraseptal emphysema as the reference group, we observed that a 1 ppb increase in O3 was associated with a 1.798-fold increased crude odds ratio of panlobular emphysema (p < 0.05). We observed that PM2.5 was associated with BODE quartiles, modified Medical Research Council (mMRC) dyspnea score, and exercise capacity (all p < 0.05). We found that PM2.5, NO2, and O3 were associated with an increased degree of upper lobe emphysema and lower lobe emphysema (all p < 0.05). Furthermore, we observed that an increase in PM2.5, NO2, and O3 was associated with greater increases in upper lobe emphysema than in lower lobe emphysema. In conclusion, exposure to O3 can be associated with a higher risk of panlobular emphysema than paraseptal emphysema in patients with COPD. Emphysema severity in lung lobes, especially the upper lobes, may be linked to air pollution exposure in COPD.

Higher alveolar deposition of particulate matter in emphysematous lobes of COPD.

The novelty of this study is that it identified the associations between PM2.5 deposition in the lung and the degree of emphysema in different lung lobes of COPD patients, especially in the right middle lobe and both upper lobes https://bit.ly/3k21ri0.