Search PubMed⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search PubMed

Results for “Pollution”

Search indexed PubMed citations on genomics, clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health. Explore titles, authors and supplied subject terms, then open the PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 1,405 records · Page 78Linked to original sources
PubMed1990

Effects of air pollution episodes on pulmonary function and respiratory symptoms.

In January 1985, a decline of primary school children's pulmonary function was observed during an air pollution episode. Ambient 24 hour average levels of SO2, TSP and RSP were in the range of 200-250 micrograms/m3. The response persisted for at least two weeks. In January 1987, again a decline of school children's pulmonary function was observed associated with an air pollution episode. Levels of TSP were about as elevated as in the 1985 episode. Two weeks after the episode, lung function levels were even lower than during the episode. In June 1987 a long term study was started to investigate potential effects of winter and summer air pollution episodes on pulmonary function and occurrence of acute respiratory symptoms of primary school children. An important issue for this study is the characterization of short term variation of lung function in absence of air pollution. Exposure is characterized by ambient levels of several gases (SO2, NO2, O3, HNO3), PM10, TSP and components of particulate matter (SO4(2-), NO3-, H-, NH4+). Sampling is being conducted on a daily basis to obtain a continuous exposure estimate. In the winter of 1987/1988, no air pollution episodes were observed. The study will continue through the winters of 1988/1989, and 1989/1990.

Air Pollution↗
PubMed1990

[Effects of Cr+6-polluted-well-water on inhabitant's health].

The increase of Cr+6 in well water results from pollution by electroplating waste water. The average content of Cr+6 in water of the wells in the polluted area is as high as 1.68 mumols/L, obviously higher than that in the control area (P less than 0.05). The health condition of inhabitants is poor in the polluted area, with a higher incidence of such symptoms as dizziness, weariness, poor appetite, abdominal pain and dermatitis. The blood pressure of the inhabitants in the polluted area is generally lower than that of those in the control area. The chromium content in the urine of 36 cases in the polluted area is 0.12 mumols/L, which is much higher than that in the control area (P less than 0.05). This investigation indicates that long-term drinking of high-chromium content water is harmful to people's health.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Acid fog: hygiene and health observations correlated with an aspect of atmospheric pollution].

In the last years the interest about acid depositions has been shifted to heterogeneous phase reactions and, particularly, to occult precipitations (fog, mist, ecc.). It is very improbable that some kind of human health hazards could derive from acid rain exposure. Instead, the human exposure to acid fog could represent a possible respiratory vehicle for the assumption of acid pollutants as well as of many other pollutants. This last assertion can be supported by the following considerations: 1) Fog may represent an important chemical reactor that can modify the nature of pollutant material in the atmosphere (acidification and other events). 2) Fog is formed near the ground where pollution sources are located so that pollution is the heaviest. The fog water droplets coalesce around preexisting aerosol which is most highly concentrated near the ground (cities and industrial areas). Since fog water droplets contain muc less water than rain drops, they do not dilute the acidity as much as rain. 3) Finally, fog is partially inhalable. In certain areas of the world, wet deposition by fog can be important to the human health, even if the acqueous concentrations of fog droplets, the acidity per volume of air and the acid deposition rate are all important factors to consider. Particularly the pH of fog does not tell the whole story, but it represents a sufficient information about the severity of the atmospheric situation that can be correlated to seriousness of human risk.

Acid Rain↗
PubMed1989

[Respiratory health of children and atmospheric pollution. I. Respiratory symptoms].

The impact on the respiratory system of complex industrial pollution (dust, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, hydrocarbons) was assessed by an analytical epidemiological study in a population of school children in the northeast of France. The parents of 375 children aged from 9-12 (middle school course 1 and 2) from the polluted zone and 523 children of the same age in a neighboring zone which was not polluted have filled in standardised questionnaires (respiratory symptoms, previous infections and allergies, frequency of infection in infancy; tobacco habits, professional and educational attainments of the parents, domestic environment). In the exposed children the majority of respiratory symptoms were more frequent (e.g., respiratory sounds in the boys, 15.6% against 7.9% p less than 0.01) and the absenteeism from school was more numerous (66.9% against 59.1% p less than 0.01). However, the interpretation of the results had to take into account the existence of confusing factors: parental smoking habits and the use of coal fires increased the prevalence of symptoms in the polluted zone, whereas a less crowded population worked in the inverse direction; likewise the educational level of the parents was higher in the polluted zone. After adjusting for these confusing factors, the frequency of rhinitis and absenteeism from school was significantly higher in exposed children.

Air Pollution↗
PubMed1989

Levels of atmospheric pollution by man-made mineral fibres in buildings.

The widespread use of man-made mineral fibres (MMMF) as insulation products in buildings can be a potential source of indoor pollution, but few data are available. Pollution levels were determined at 79 indoor and 18 outdoor locations. The standardized method (membrane filter method) was adapted to the environmental settings: 10 m3 of air was sampled over a period of 5 days; the specimen was prepared by an indirect method (low-temperature ashing); counting was carried out at a magnification of 250; MMMF were identified by their optical properties under the polarizing optical microscope. Indoor pollution levels were found to be in the range 0-6230 respirable fibres per m3, with a median value of 3. Outdoor airborne pollution levels were lower than 15 respirable fibres per m3, with a median value of 1. More data are needed in order to make a more precise assessment of the risk associated with environmental MMMF pollution; a standardized method of obtaining such data is also necessary.

Air Pollutants↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Viral pollution studies of water environments].

Virus pollution was studied in 734 water samples collected from the Dîmboviţa River (310), lakes inside the town of Bucharest (136) and swimming pools (288). The results showed that the works carried out these last years to regularize the Dîmboviţa led to a reduction of the virus pollution rate from 16.6-26.9% in 1984 to 4.16-5% in 1988. As for the lake and swimming pool waters, the pollution rate is directly proportional to the applied general hygiene measures. In summer, in drained lakes strictly controlled from the domestic and industrial sewage discharge point of view, the pollution rate was no higher than 6%, while in the lakes receiving sewage the frequency of isolations was between 12.5 and 18.75%. The same situation was found for swimming pools. A microepidemics of blepharoconjunctivitis was recorded in 1988 at a sport base: viruses were isolated from 20% of the water samples collected from its swimming pool, while virus pollution was about zero in the swimming pool water of some big hotels in Bucharest.

Fresh Water↗
PubMed1988

[Clinical and spirometric repercussions of chronic exposure to air pollutants in children in the region of the Gardanne coal-basin].

Our goal was to evaluate the long-term effects of exposure to air pollutants in schoolchildren living in the Gardanne coal-basin. The group consisted of 193 children 9 to 11 years old, 128 living in polluted communities, 65 in low polluted communities. The protocol included a standardized questionnaire and a spirometric evaluation. The prevalence of pulmonary and E.N.T. symptoms was higher in the polluted communities, but a statistically significant difference was only observed for the symptom "wheezing in the chest". The spirometric values, FEV1 and FVC, were very similar in both areas. It is likely that spirometric abnormalities will appear later in those schoolchildren. Indeed, in the same area, studies performed in groups of housewives have demonstrated a higher prevalence of respiratory symptoms, as well as spirometric abnormalities in subjects living in high polluted communities.

Air Pollutants↗
PubMed1985

Air pollution and lung cancer in Liaoning Province, People's Republic of China.

A correlation study linking age-adjusted lung cancer mortality rates with indices of air pollution was conducted as a first step in the investigation of the high rate of lung cancer in Liaoning Province. Mortality rates for this cancer during 1976-78 for males and females were elevated in the large industrial cities with metallurgical processing and machinery manufacturing industries, after smoking was taken into account. However, there was little correlation between measures of total suspended particulates and lung cancer rates across the 10 major cities of the Province. Neighborhood air pollution indices correlated significantly with local commune mortality rates within the largest city, and lung cancer rates were higher near certain point sources of industrial pollution (including a copper-zinc smelter). These findings indicate that the atmospheric pollution in this northern Chinese province may contribute to lung cancer risk and that further analytic epidemiologic study in this high-risk area is warranted for evaluation of the role of outdoor and indoor air pollutants.

Air Pollution↗
PubMed1985

[Bacterial pollution of the lagoon of Tunis].

The authors present in this paper a study about the bacterian pollution of the lagoon of Tunis based on 120 samples collected in 10 different stations. This study points out that the lagoon is polluted (50.8% of the samples) mostly in autumn and in winter. The pollution is exogenous, chiefly caused by the rain spreading over polluted waters of wastes and of rivers, and also by the action of the winds and of the currents on the sediments hosting microbiological parameters of faecal pollution.

Enterobacteriaceae↗
PubMed1985

A plan of the comprehensive study on indoor pollution and its health effects by the Aichi Prefecture, Japan.

In order to study the level and nature of the indoor pollution and its possible health effect the Department of Public Health of the Aichi Prefecture in Japan is planning to conduct a comprehensive study on indoor pollution. An outline of this study is presented in this report. The study will consist of measurements of the indoor pollution and health surveys for a sample of 10 large buildings and 75 houses involving 2,000 persons for the former and 1,000 three year old children and their mothers for the latter. The major survey items on the indoor pollution are measurements of suspended particles, CO, CO2, NO2, formaldehyde, falling and floating bacteria and fungi, mutagenicity, types of air cleaners, air conditioners and ventilators, and the number of smokers etc. The major health survey items are a questionnaire survey on respiratory diseases, pulmonary function tests, chest X-ray test, and measurement of urine hydroxyproline concentration. This comprehensive study on indoor pollution will be conducted for 5 years beginning the fiscal year 1984.

Air Pollution↗
PubMed1985

Bacteriological methods for distinguishing between human and animal faecal pollution of water: results of fieldwork in Nigeria and Zimbabwe.

Bacteriological techniques have traditionally been used to detect faecal pollution of drinking water supplies. Recently, methods have been developed to distinguish between human and animal faecal pollution in temperate climates. The present study assessed the applicability and practicality of these methods in tropical countries. Fieldwork in Nigeria and Zimbabwe has shown that animal faecal pollution can reliably be identified by the detection and enumeration of Rhodococcus coprophilus using modified M3 agar, whereas human faecal contamination can be identified by the detection of sorbitol-fermenting bifidobacteria. Each of these organisms was detected only in the faeces of the type (human or animal) that it was meant to indicate. Although Streptococcus bovis has been used in the past in mainly temperate countries to distinguish animal from human faecal contamination, the present study has shown that this organism is not a reliable indicator of animal pollution in the tropics because it was excreted by a proportion of the human population in both Nigeria and Zimbabwe. Water sources known to be contaminated by human or animal excreta were examined for these indicator organisms. The results correlated with the results obtained from examining human and animal faecal specimens for these organisms. The role of these bacteriological methods in water pollution control programmes is discussed.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Water pollution and diseases in fish (an epizootiologic survey).

Three watersheds, varying from highly polluted or moderately polluted to essentially pollution-free, were surveyed to determine the frequency of fish disease. Over a five year period, it was found that a relationship existed between the level of pollution and frequency of disease. The occurrence rates of microbial and oncogenic diseases increased similarly in relation to increases in pollution in the waters. Since the water systems studied provide recreational opportunities for man, it is suggested that catching and subsequent ingesting of diseased fish from these waters present a health hazard.

Animals↗
PubMed1979

[Changes of biochemical processes of the lungs caused by air pollutants (author's transl)].

The investigations of the last 10 years have shown that beside the respiratory function the biochemical processes of the lungs are of basic importance. The normal biochemical processes are the prerequisite to a normal respiratory function. Today the problems of air pollutants are topical. Therefore a review of the new literature about the influence of air pollutants on biochemical processes of the lungs is given. The following substances are included: gaseous air pollutants (ozone, NO2, SO2, phosgene) and aerosols as well as dust (cadmium, paraquat, carcinogens, tobacco smoke). Furthermore the biochemical changes of the lungs by high and low oxygen concentrations are described. Our knowledge concerning the simultaneous influence of several pollutants, the possibilities for an early biochemical detection of damages caused by air pollutants, and their therapeutical influence are still limited.

Air Pollutants↗
PubMed1970

The new airborne disease. Community air pollution.

Community air pollution is the new airborne disease of our generation's communities. It is caused by the increasing use of fuel, associated with both affluence and careless waste. Photochemical air pollution of the California type involves newly defined atmospheric reactions, is due mostly to motor vehicle exhaust, is oxidizing, and produces ozone, plant damage, impairment of visibility and eye and respiratory symptoms. Aggravation of asthma, impairment of lung function among persons with chronic respiratory disease and a possible causal role, along with cigarette smoking in emphysema and chronic bronchitis, are some of the effects of photochemical pollution. More subtle effects of pollution include impairment of oxygen transport by the blood due to carbon monoxide and interference with porphyrin metabolism due to lead. Carbon monoxide exposures may affect survival of patients who are in hospitals because of myocardial infarction. While many uncertainties in pollution-health reactions need to be resolved, a large number of people in California have health impairment due to airborne disease of this new type.

Air Pollution↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Influence of atmospheric pollution by sulfur products and dusts on public health. I. - Method problems (author's transl)].

Since the great atmospheric pollution accidents from sulfur oxides and suspended particulate matters, the concentrations of these pollutants have notably reduced. The experimental concentrations which are necessary to obtain results are even more important than these "historical" concentrations. Among the aggregate of epidemiologic surveys regarding these problems, some find a relationship between strong concentrations of pollution and morbidity and mortality. Such results are explained by references to experimental and metrologic knowledge. As far as epidemiological problems are concerned infectious and meteorological factors have to be eliminated to determine which is the place of atmospheric pollution. But such a place in all respects being so small, has to be defined in a more precise way. One cannot be certain whether the improvement of epidemiological and metrological methods may give more conclusive results, taking into account the foreseeable reduction of the pollution in the years to come.

Adult↗
PubMed1976

Joint air pollution sampling program in twin cities on the U.S.-Mexico border.

Ciudad Juárez (Chihuahua) and El Paso (Texas), two cities on the U.S.-Mexico border, form a single environmental system in which the same natural resources, especially air and water, are shared. It also constitutes a single metropolitan area which is characterized by high rates of pipulation growth, economic development, and urban expansion, all these factors mitigating against air quality. Early in 1972 the health authorities in El Paso and Ciudad Juárez initiated a joint air pollution sampling program with assistance from the Pan American Health Organization. The nearby city of Las Cruces (New Mexico) was later included in the program as well. Activities are carried out in accordance with a document entitled "Bases of Cooperation." The guiding criteria of the program are: functional simplicity, operational economy, and complementarity with other sampling programs conducted by the participating services. An Air Pollution Control Subcommittee is responsible for execution coordination of the program. Three studies are currently underway to determine levels of dust pollution in the air. A fourth study is aimed at measuring sulfur dioxide levels through the use of sulfation plates. The results collected reveal concentrations of particulates in the ambient air levels higher than the U.S. Federal primary standards. The program should be expanded to include the study of other pollutants and a joint inventory of emissions. In this way criteria on air quality may be established and joint plans of action and strategies drawn up for the control of air pollution in this important area.

Air Pollutants↗
PubMed1983

[Effect of atmospheric pollution (SO2--dust) and meteorological conditions on mortality in Paris between 1969 and 1976].

The short-term effect of environmental factors (atmospheric pollutants, meteorology) on mortality are studied with 8 years of continuous daily data collected in Paris (1969-1976). Mortality data are specified using daily-rate of death, according to diagnosis and age-range. Chosen pollutants are acidity and smoke. Meteorological conditions are identified by synoptic data and local parameters (pressure, temperature, humidity). Relations between mortality and pollution, and their interaction with meteorological conditions, have been described with several statistical methods. Among results, it is shown for example that relation of pollution levels with total daily deaths is not very clear but it becomes very significant for very old population; the strongest relation occurs for deaths connected with respiratory diseases, with a maximum 2 or 3 days after, but possibly later. Climatic factors such as synoptic situation and temperature have also influence on mortality but not so significant as pollution.

Aged↗
PubMed1983

[Descriptive analysis of episodes of atmospheric pollution occurring in Paris between 1969 and 1976 and their consequences on daily mortality].

Simultaneous evolution of daily data collected in Paris (1969-1976) concerning mortality on the one hand, and pollution and meteorology on the other hand, is described during two specific episodes: the first, observed in december 1969, is a high mortality one, due to an influenza epidemic; the other, observed in december 72-january 73, is related to high pollution levels. Mortality data are specified using daily-rate of death, according to diagnosis and age-range. Chosen pollutants are acidity and smoke. Meteorological conditions are identified by synoptic data and local parameters (pressure, temperature and humidity). Among results, it is shown for example that the mortality-excess is mainly due to respiratory diseases, that it concerns elderly persons when heavy pollution, but younger persons (less than 75 years old) when influenza epidemic; pollution effects are not detected when daily acidity level is less than 300 micrograms/m3 but they systematically appear for level more than 400 micrograms/m3. "Compensation" effects (mortality-rate decrease occurring after high mortality days) have been pointed out. Tentative interpretation is proposed, including also temperature and humidity effects, and validation is necessary to do.

Adult↗