Impact of Saharan Dust on Severe Small for Gestational Births in the Caribbean

Viel, Jean‐François; Michineau, Léah; Garbin, Céline; Monfort, Christine; Kadhel, Philippe; Multigner, Luc; Rouget, Florence

doi:10.4269/ajtmh.19-0699

Cited by 8 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…Viel et al (2019) looked at the association between Saharan dust intrusions and birth outcomes on the island of Guadeloupe, showing an association between mean PM 10 concentration and the proportion of intense dust events and preterm births. A follow-up study also found a relationship between increased PM 10 and low birth weight (Viel et al, 2020).…”

Section: Other Morbidity Effectsmentioning

confidence: 82%

Health and Safety Effects of Airborne Soil Dust in the Americas and Beyond

Tong

Baklanov

Barker

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Risks associated with dust hazards are often underappreciated, a gap between the knowledge pool and public awareness that can be costly for impacted communities. This study reviews the emission sources and chemical, physical, and biological characteristics of airborne soil particles (dust) and their effects on human and environmental health and safety in the Pan-American region. American dust originates from both local sources (western United States, northern Mexico, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina) and long-range transport from Africa and Asia. Dust properties, as well as the trends and interactions with criteria air pollutants, are summarized. Human exposure to dust is associated with adverse health effects, including asthma, allergies, fungal infections, and premature death. In the Americas, a well-documented and striking effect of soil dust is its association with Coccidioidomycosis, commonly known as Valley fever, an infection caused by inhalation of soil-dwelling fungi unique to this region. Besides human health, dust affects environmental health through nutrients that increase phytoplankton biomass, contaminants that diminish water supply and affect food (crops/ fruits/vegetables and ready-to-eat meat), spread crop and marine pathogens, cause Valley fever among domestic and wild animals, transport heavy metals, radionuclides and microplastics, and reduce solar and wind power generation. Dust is also a safety hazard to road transportation and aviation, in the southwestern US where blowing dust is one of the deadliest weather hazards. To mitigate the harmful effects, coordinated regional and international efforts are needed to enhance dust observations and prediction capabilities, soil conservation measures, and Valley fever and other disease surveillance.Plain Language Summary Soil particles suspended in the air, commonly known as dust, impose substantial risks to many sectors of society, including human health, environmental health, transportation safety and the general economy. This work focuses on the dust effects in the Pan-American region, where the knowledge is rather fragmented, but impacts are costly.

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Section: Other Morbidity Effectsmentioning

confidence: 82%

Health and Safety Effects of Airborne Soil Dust in the Americas and Beyond

Tong

Baklanov

Barker

et al. 2021

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…(2019) looked at the association between Saharan dust intrusions and birth outcomes on the island of Guadeloupe, showing an association between mean PM 10 concentration and the proportion of intense dust events and preterm births. A follow‐up study also found a relationship between increased PM 10 and low birth weight (Viel et al., 2020).…”

Section: Effects On Human Healthmentioning

confidence: 91%

Health and Safety Effects of Airborne Soil Dust in the Americas and Beyond

Tong

Gill

Sprigg

et al. 2023

Reviews of Geophysics

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Risks associated with dust hazards are often underappreciated, a gap between the knowledge pool and public awareness that can be costly for impacted communities. This study reviews the emission sources and chemical, physical, and biological characteristics of airborne soil particles (dust) and their effects on human and environmental health and safety in the Pan‐American region. American dust originates from both local sources (western United States, northern Mexico, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina) and long‐range transport from Africa and Asia. Dust properties, as well as the trends and interactions with criteria air pollutants, are summarized. Human exposure to dust is associated with adverse health effects, including asthma, allergies, fungal infections, and premature death. In the Americas, a well‐documented and striking effect of soil dust is its association with Coccidioidomycosis, commonly known as Valley fever, an infection caused by inhalation of soil‐dwelling fungi unique to this region. Besides human health, dust affects environmental health through nutrients that increase phytoplankton biomass, contaminants that diminish water supply and affect food (crops/fruits/vegetables and ready‐to‐eat meat), spread crop and marine pathogens, cause Valley fever among domestic and wild animals, transport heavy metals, radionuclides and microplastics, and reduce solar and wind power generation. Dust is also a safety hazard to road transportation and aviation, in the southwestern US where blowing dust is one of the deadliest weather hazards. To mitigate the harmful effects, coordinated regional and international efforts are needed to enhance dust observations and prediction capabilities, soil conservation measures, and Valley fever and other disease surveillance.

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“…Thus, the Caribbean are known to have some of the highest incidences of asthma on the planet due to dust outbreaks (Urrutia-Pereira et al, 2021). A recent study made by Viel et al (2020) in Guadeloupe also indicated that Saharan dust seems to influence weight but not length or head circumference at birth. For all the reasons aforementioned, it is therefore crucial to determine the detection threshold for African dust in the Caribbean basin.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Quantifying Spatio-Temporal Dynamics of African Dust Detection Threshold for PM10 Concentrations in the Caribbean Area Using Multiscale Decomposition

Plocoste

Euphrasie-Clotilde

Calif

et al. 2022

Front. Environ. Sci.

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Due to African dust, the Caribbean area is known to have one of the highest incidences of asthma on the planet. Consequently, it is crucial to dissociate the impact of local sources from large scale sources in this region. The aim of this study was to estimate the PM10 detection threshold for dusty events using a statistical approach and a dynamic approach. To carry out this analysis, PM10 time series from Martinique (MAR), Guadeloupe (GPE) and Puerto-Rico (PR) were used between 2006 and 2016. The statistical analysis highlighted that the distance from the African coast is a key feature for PM10 concentrations distribution with the highest at MAR (26.52 μg/m3) and the lowest at PR (24.42 μg/m3). The probability density function analysis showed that MAR-GPE-PR distributions converge towards a same point between the first and the second maximum probability value at 28 μg/m3. The dynamical analysis with the Complete Ensemble Empirical Mode Decomposition with Adaptive Noise (CEEMDAN) and the Improved CEEMDAN (ICEEMDAN) validated the 28 μg/m3 found with the statistical analysis. The analysis of HYSPLIT back trajectories confirmed this threshold. Thus, our results indicated that 28 μg/m3 is the PM10 detection threshold for African dust in the Caribbean basin. It will therefore be a good indicator allowing the competent authorities to take the appropriate decisions to protect vulnerable populations during dusty events.

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Impact of Saharan Dust on Severe Small for Gestational Births in the Caribbean

Cited by 8 publications

References 8 publications

Health and Safety Effects of Airborne Soil Dust in the Americas and Beyond

Health and Safety Effects of Airborne Soil Dust in the Americas and Beyond

Health and Safety Effects of Airborne Soil Dust in the Americas and Beyond

Quantifying Spatio-Temporal Dynamics of African Dust Detection Threshold for PM10 Concentrations in the Caribbean Area Using Multiscale Decomposition

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