Air pollution and daily emergency department visits for depression

Abstract

Objectives: To investigate the potential correlation between ambient air pollution exposure and emergency department (ED) visits for depression. Materials and Methods: A hierarchical clusters design was used to study 27 047 ED visits for depression in six cities in Canada. The data used in the analysis contain the dates of visits, daily numbers of diagnosed visits, and daily mean concentrations of air pollutants as well as the meteorological factors. The generalized linear mixed models technique was applied to data analysis. Poisson models were fitted to the clustered counts of ED visits with a single air pollutant, temperature and relative humidity. Results: Statistically significant positive correlations were observed between the number of ED visits for depression and the air concentrations of carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ), sulphur dioxide (SO 2 ) and particulate matter (PM 10 ). The percentage increase in daily ED visits was 15.5% (95% CI: 8.0-23.5) for CO per 0.8 ppm and 20.0% (95% CI: 13.3-27.2) for NO 2 per 20.1 ppb, for same day exposure in the warm weather period (April-September). For PM 10 , the largest increase, 7.2% (95% CI: 3.0-11.6) per 19.4 ug/m 3 , was observed for the cold weather period (October-March). Conclusions: The results support the hypothesis that ED visits for depressive disorder correlate with ambient air pollution, and that a large majority of this pollution results from combustion of fossil fuels (e.g. in motor vehicles).

Ambient sulfur dioxide and female ED visits for depression

“…For female patients, the published results indicated the positive and statistically significant associations between sulfur dioxide and ED visits for depression. A similarity in responses to exposure to ambient sulfur dioxide and ED visits for depression and cardiac conditions was observed (Szyszkowicz 2009b). This finding is supported by the observed comorbidity of depression and coronary heart diseases (Lichtman et al 2008).…”

“…This study was prompted by two recent publications (Szyszkowicz 2007;Szyszkowicz et al 2009b) relating to the investigation of ambient air pollution exposure and ED visits for depression. For female patients, the published results indicated the positive and statistically significant associations between sulfur dioxide and ED visits for depression.…”

Long-range ozone transport and its impact on respiratory and cardiovascular health in the north of Portugal

“…It must be stated that, during the first two events, there were fire spots near the GMAP (Table 2). Nevertheless, clear associations between ozone levels and cardiovascular disease have previously been demonstrated (Hong et al 2002;Szyszkowicz 2007).…”

Effect of ambient air pollution on the incidence of appendicitis

“…These findings were similar to those observed in our study. In contrast, despite examining 6 pollutants, stratifying by sex and season, and exploring 3 lag periods, Szyszkowicz 33 observed no association between air pollution and anxiety in 23 178 visits to the emergency department in Edmonton. Thus, the association between air pollution and appendicitis may not have been entirely spurious.…”