Airborne Suspended Particulate Matter and the Prevalence of Allergic Conjunctivitis in Japan

Abstract

BackgroundThis study aimed to examine the association of suspended particulate matter (SPM) with outpatient attendance for allergic conjunctivitis. MethodologyThe information on air pollution, encompassing total hydrocarbons, non-methane hydrocarbons, methane, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide, nitric oxide, oxidants, and SPM alongside data concerning daily weather conditions such as temperature, wind speed, and humidity, was gathered. Subsequently, the weekly mean values for outpatient visits, air pollution, and weather parameters were computed. ResultsThe number of outpatient visits for allergic conjunctivitis was significantly associated with SPM levels (r = 0.70, p = 0.0037), oxidant levels (r = 0.70, p = 0.0038), wind speed (r = 0.48, p = 0.0472), and humidity (r = 0.77, p = 0.0009) from January to March, as well as SPM levels (r = 0.53, p = 0.0309) and carbon monoxide (r = 0.56, p = 0.0230) from April to June. Multivariate analysis showed that SPM (odds ratio = 1.37, p = 0.0161) and wind velocity (odds ratio = 1.52, p = 0.0038) were significant predictors of the number of outpatient visits from January to December. ConclusionsSPM levels were the only independent predictor of outpatient visits for allergic conjunctivitis, suggesting that SPM contributes to the pathophysiology of this condition.

Inflammatory Cytokines and Chemokines Are Synergistically Induced in a ROS-Dependent Manner by a Co-Culture of Corneal Epithelial Cells and Neutrophil-like Cells in the Presence of Particulate Matter

“…PM2.5, a critical element of atmospheric pollution, can attack a variety of different organs in the body [25]. In particular, eye epithelial cells that are subject to direct airborne contact with pollutants may become more susceptible to inflammation [26,27]. As we previously showed that PM induces inflammation [28], PM was also thought to be involved in inducing inflammation in the cornea.…”