Ozone effects on lung function are particularly important to understand in the context of the air pollution-health outcomes epidemiologic literature, given the complex relationships between ozone and other air pollutants with known lung function effects.
Research Question
What has been learned about the association between ozone exposures and lung function from epidemiology studies published from 2013 through 2020?
Study Design and Methods
On March 18, 2018, and September 8, 2020, PubMed was searched using the terms health AND ozone,...
Pollution from landscape fires, which are increasing with climate change, leads to babies being born with lower birthweights in low- and middle-income countries.
We review the interaction between coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and coccidioidomycosis, a respiratory infection caused by inhalation of Coccidioides fungal spores in dust. We examine risk for co-infection among construction and agricultural workers, incarcerated persons, Black and Latino populations, and persons living in high dust areas. We further identify common risk factors for co-infection, including older age, diabetes, immunosuppression, racial or ethnic minority status, and smoking. Because these diseases cause similar symptoms, the COVID-19 pandemic...
Objectives: Healthcare personnel have faced unprecedented mental health challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study objective is to assess differences in depression, anxiety, and burnout among healthcare personnel with various occupational roles and whether financial and job strain were associated with these mental health outcomes.
Methods: We employed an anonymous survey between July and August 2020 at an urban county hospital in California, USA. We assessed depression, anxiety, and burnout using validated scales, and asked questions on...
Women and children in rural regions of low-income countries are exposed to high levels of household air pollution (HAP) as they traditionally tend to household chores such as cooking with biomass fuels. Early life exposure to air pollution is associated with aeroallergen sensitization and developing allergic diseases at older ages. This prospective cohort study assigned HAP-reducing chimney stoves to 557 households in rural Guatemala at different ages of the study children. The children's air pollution exposure was measured using personal CO diffusion tubes. Allergic outcomes at 4-5...
Previous studies have shown associations between air pollutants and low birth weight. However, few studies assess whether poverty and race/ethnicity are effect modifiers for this relationship. We used publicly available data on 7785 California census tracts from the California Communities Environmental Health Screening Tool (CalEnviroScreen). Multivariable linear regression was used to examine the association between outdoor PM2.5 and low birth weight (LBW), including stratification by poverty and race/ethnicity (as a proxy for experienced racism). A 1 µg m...
This study investigates the relationship between temporal changes in temperatures characterizing local urban heat islands (UHIs) and heat-related illnesses (HRIs) in seven major cities of California. UHIs, which are a phenomenon that arises in the presence of impervious surfaces or the lack of green spaces exacerbate the effects of extreme heat events, can be measured longitudinally using satellite products. The two objectives of this study were: (1) to identify temperature trends in local temperatures to characterize UHIs across zip code tabulation areas (ZCTAs) in the seven...
Introduction: While considered extreme events, wildfires will lengthen and strengthen in a changing climate, becoming an omnipresent climate-sensitive exposure. However, few studies consider long-term exposure to wildfire fine particulate matter (PM2.5 ). Here, we present a conceptual model to assess longterm wildfire PM2.5 exposure and evaluate disproportionate exposures among marginalized communities. Methods: We used 2006-2020 California census tract-level daily wildfire PM2.5 concentrations generated from monitoring data and statistical techniques to derive five long-term wildfire PM2....
In previous studies, investigators have reported increased risks of specific cancers associated with exposure to metalworking fluids (MWFs). In this report we broadly examine the incidence of 14 types of cancer, with a focus on digestive, respiratory, and hormonal cancers, in the United Auto Workers-General Motors (UAW-GM) cohort, a cohort of workers exposed to MWFs (1973-2015). The cohort included 39,132 workers followed for cancer incidence. Cox models yielded estimates of adjusted hazard ratios, with categorical variables for lagged cumulative exposure to 3 types of MWF (straight...
Evidence in the literature suggests that air pollution exposures experienced prenatally and early in life can be detrimental to normal lung development, however the specific timing of critical windows during development is not fully understood.
Objectives:
We evaluated air pollution exposures during the prenatal and early-life period in association with lung function at ages 6–9, in an effort to identify potentially influential windows of exposure for lung development.
Methods:
Our study population consisted of 222 children aged 6–9 from the Fresno-...
