The effect of air pollution on hospitalization of individuals with respiratory and cardiovascular diseases in Jinan, China

To analyze the short-term effects of air pollution on the hospitalization rates of individuals with acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD), stroke, and myocardial infarction (MI) after adjusting for confounding factors including weather, day of the week, holidays, and long-term trends in Jinan, China. Hospitalization information was extracted based on data from the primary class 3-A hospitals in Jinan from 2013 to 2015. The concentrations of PM(2.5), PM(10), SO(2), NO(2), and O(3) were obtained from Jinan Environment Monitoring Center. The relative risk and 95% confidence intervals of AECOPD, stroke, and MI were estimated using generalized additive models with quasi-Poisson distribution in the mgcv package, using R software, version 1.0.136. The incremental increased concentrations of particulate pollutants including PM(2.5) and PM(10) were significantly associated with increased risk of hospitalization of AECOPD, stroke, and MI, and the adverse influences of PM(2.5) on these diseases were generally stronger than that of PM(10). The incremental increased concentrations of gaseous pollutants including SO(2), NO(2), and O(3) were significantly associated with increased risk of hospitalization of stroke and MI in this population. Air pollution has significant adverse effects on hospitalization rates of individuals with AECOPD, stroke, and MI in Jinan, China.