The effects of air pollution and meteorological factors on measles cases in Lanzhou, China

Lu, Peng; Zhao, Xueyan; Yan, Tao; Mi, Shengquan; Huang, Ju; Zhang, Qinkai

doi:10.1007/s11356-020-07903-4

Cited by 79 publications

(71 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…The authors highlighted that an increase in PM2.5 equal to 10 µg/m 3 was significantly associated with a higher incidence of measles, providing the final recommendation to foster PM reduction strategies in order to slow down the infection diffusion rate. Following these preliminary findings, Peng et al in 2020 provided additional evidence on the interaction between particles and viruses, demonstrating that high PM concentration levels significantly affected the measles spread in Lanzhou (China) [16]. Moreover, these authors suggested reducing PM concentration levels with the purpose to lower the potential risks of measles outbreaks in the exposed population.…”

Section: Covid-19: What Evidence Is There About a Possible Airborne Rmentioning

confidence: 97%

Airborne Transmission Route of COVID-19: Why 2 Meters/6 Feet of Inter-Personal Distance Could Not Be Enough

Setti

Passarini

Gennaro

et al. 2020

IJERPH

603

482

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The COVID-19 pandemic caused the shutdown of entire nations all over the world. In addition to mobility restrictions of people, the World Health Organization and the Governments have prescribed maintaining an inter-personal distance of 1.5 or 2 m (about 6 feet) from each other in order to minimize the risk of contagion through the droplets that we usually disseminate around us from nose and mouth. However, recently published studies support the hypothesis of virus transmission over a distance of 2 m from an infected person. Researchers have proved the higher aerosol and surface stability of SARS-COV-2 as compared with SARS-COV-1 (with the virus remaining viable and infectious in aerosol for hours) and that airborne transmission of SARS-CoV can occur besides close-distance contacts. Indeed, there is reasonable evidence about the possibility of SARS-COV-2 airborne transmission due to its persistence into aerosol droplets in a viable and infectious form. Based on the available knowledge and epidemiological observations, it is plausible that small particles containing the virus may diffuse in indoor environments covering distances up to 10 m from the emission sources, thus representing a kind of aerosol transmission. On-field studies carried out inside Wuhan Hospitals showed the presence of SARS-COV-2 RNA in air samples collected in the hospitals and also in the surroundings, leading to the conclusion that the airborne route has to be considered an important pathway for viral diffusion. Similar findings are reported in analyses concerning air samples collected at the Nebraska University Hospital. On March 16th, we have released a Position Paper emphasizing the airborne route as a possible additional factor for interpreting the anomalous COVID-19 outbreaks in northern Italy, ranked as one of the most polluted areas in Europe and characterized by high particulate matter (PM) concentrations. The available information on the SARS-COV-2 spreading supports the hypothesis of airborne diffusion of infected droplets from person to person at a distance greater than two meters (6 feet). The inter-personal distance of 2 m can be reasonably considered as an effective protection only if everybody wears face masks in daily life activities.

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Section: Covid-19: What Evidence Is There About a Possible Airborne Rmentioning

confidence: 97%

Airborne Transmission Route of COVID-19: Why 2 Meters/6 Feet of Inter-Personal Distance Could Not Be Enough

Setti

Passarini

Gennaro

et al. 2020

IJERPH

603

482

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Meanwhile, a survey carried out in the U.S. by the Harvard School of Public Health has suggested a strong association between increases in particulate matter concentration and mortality rates due to COVID-19, with The Lancet scientific community highlighting the need for adopting a planetary health perspective on COVID-19 outbreak [6,7]. Further experimental studies could specifically assess the possibility that particulate matter may act as a "carrier" for the viral droplet nuclei, as it has been shown for other viruses, eventually impressing a "boost effect" to the spreading of the viral infection [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18]. At the present, no assumptions can be made concerning the correlation between the possible presence of the virus on PM and COVID-19 outbreak progression.…”

Section: Covid-19: An Unexpected Threat To Human Health and Society Imentioning

confidence: 99%

“…At the present, no assumptions can be made concerning the correlation between the possible presence of the virus on PM and COVID-19 outbreak progression. However, based on the available literature, there is already enough evidence to consider the airborne route, with a potential role of particulate matter, as a possible additional factor for interpreting the anomalous COVID-19 outbreaks observed in Northern Italy and in the U.S., as well as in other areas characterized by high PM concentrations [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18]. On these bases, in the frame of the One Health approach that can be applied to the international emergency generated by the SARS-COV-2 as it involves the interactions between humans and environment, the Italian Society of Environmental Medicine and the UNESCO Chair on Health Education and Sustainable Development support the vision of Sir Andy Haines, who has called for the adoption of urgent actions to counteract climate changes and the alteration of ecosystems that might trigger new and unexpected threats to human health such as that of COVID-19, which we are so dramatically experiencing worldwide [19].…”

Section: Covid-19: An Unexpected Threat To Human Health and Society Imentioning

confidence: 99%

Searching for SARS-COV-2 on Particulate Matter: A Possible Early Indicator of COVID-19 Epidemic Recurrence

Setti

Passarini

Gennaro

et al. 2020

IJERPH

116

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A number of nations were forced to declare a total shutdown due to COVID-19 infection, as extreme measure to cope with dramatic impact of the pandemic, with remarkable consequences both in terms of negative health outcomes and economic loses. However, in many countries a “Phase-2” is approaching and many activities will re-open soon, although with some differences depending on the severity of the outbreak experienced and SARS-COV-2 estimated diffusion in the general population. At the present, possible relapses of the epidemic cannot be excluded until effective vaccines or immunoprophylaxis with human recombinant antibodies will be properly set up and commercialized. COVD-19-related quarantines have triggered serious social challenges, so that decision makers are concerned about the risk of wasting all the sacrifices imposed to the people in these months of quarantine. The availability of possible early predictive indicators of future epidemic relapses would be very useful for public health purposes, and could potentially prevent the suspension of entire national economic systems. On 16 March, a Position Paper launched by the Italian Society of Environmental Medicine (SIMA) hypothesized for the first time a possible link between the dramatic impact of COVID-19 outbreak in Northern Italy and the high concentrations of particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5) that characterize this area, along with its well-known specific climatic conditions. Thereafter, a survey carried out in the U.S. by the Harvard School of Public Health suggested a strong association between increases in particulate matter concentration and mortality rates due to COVID-19. The presence of SARS-COV-2 RNA on the particulate matter of Bergamo, which is not far from Milan and represents the epicenter of the Italian epidemic, seems to confirm (at least in case of atmospheric stability and high PM concentrations, as it usually occurs in Northern Italy) that the virus can create clusters with the particles and be carried and detected on PM10. Although no assumptions can be made concerning the link between this first experimental finding and COVID-19 outbreak progression or severity, the presence of SARS-COV-2 RNA on PM10 of outdoor air samples in any city of the world could represent a potential early indicator of COVID-19 diffusion. Searching for the viral genome on particulate matter could therefore be explored among the possible strategies for adopting all the necessary preventive measures before future epidemics start.

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“…Airborne microorganisms can directly infect other people's mucosae or travel further into the air and onto surfaces causing delayed infections. The particles of several pollutants such as PM and NO2 can act as a vector for the spread and extended survival in the air of bioaerosols [21][22][23][24][25][26] including viruses [27][28][29][30][31] . A first hypothesis in this direction has arisen for COVID-19 in Northern Italy 32 granted that the viral load in a flying aggregate can be enough to cause morbidity.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

COVID-19 higher induced mortality in Chinese regions with lower air quality

Pansini

Fornacca

2020

Preprint

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COVID-19 has spread in all continents in a span of just over three months, escalating into a pandemic that poses several humanitarian as well as scientific challenges. We here investigated the geographical expansion of the infection and correlate it with the annual indexes of air quality observed from the Sentinel-5 satellite orbiting around China, Italy and the U.S.A. Controlling for population size, we find more viral infections in those areas afflicted by Carbon Monoxide (CO) and Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2). Higher mortality was also correlated with poor air quality, namely with high PM2.5, CO and NO2 values. In Italy, the correspondence between poor air quality and SARS-CoV-2 appearance and induced mortality was the starkest. Similar to smoking, people living in polluted areas are more vulnerable to SARS-CoV-2 infections and induced mortality. This further suggests the detrimental impact climate change will have on the trajectory of future epidemics.Significance -We found a significant correlation between levels of air quality and COVID-19 spread and mortality in China, Italy and the United States. Despite the infection being still ongoing at a global level, these correlations are relatively robust not being influenced by varying population densities. Living in an area with low air quality seems to be a risk factor for becoming infected and dying from this new form of coronavirus.

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The effects of air pollution and meteorological factors on measles cases in Lanzhou, China

Cited by 79 publications

References 38 publications

Airborne Transmission Route of COVID-19: Why 2 Meters/6 Feet of Inter-Personal Distance Could Not Be Enough

Airborne Transmission Route of COVID-19: Why 2 Meters/6 Feet of Inter-Personal Distance Could Not Be Enough

Searching for SARS-COV-2 on Particulate Matter: A Possible Early Indicator of COVID-19 Epidemic Recurrence

COVID-19 higher induced mortality in Chinese regions with lower air quality

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