Impact of birth season on the years of life lost from respiratory diseases in the elderly related to ambient PM(2.5) exposure in Ningbo, China

BACKGROUND: Ambient fine particle (PM(2.5)) pollution is an important public health problem in China. Short-term ambient PM(2.5) exposure is associated with increased mortality of respiratory diseases. However, few evidence was available on the effect of exposure to ambient PM(2.5) on the years of life lost (YLL) from respiratory diseases in the elderly. Furthermore, birth season which is frequently applied as a proxy for environmental exposure in early life may influence the health outcome in the later life. Nevertheless, the modification effect of birth season on the relationship of PM(2.5) exposure and respiratory health need to be explored. METHODS: A time-stratified case-crossover design was used to analyze YLL from respiratory diseases in the elderly related to ambient PM(2.5) exposure between 2013 and 2016 in Ningbo, China. The modification effect of birth season was explored by subgroup comparisons between different birth seasons. RESULTS: Each 10 μg/m(3) increase in daily ambient PM(2.5) was associated with an increment of 1.61 (95% CI 0.12, 3.10) years in YLL from respiratory diseases in the elderly population. Individuals who were born in winter had significantly higher YLL from respiratory diseases associated with ambient PM(2.5) exposure than those who were born in other seasons. CONCLUSIONS: Birth season which reflects the early-life PM(2.5) exposure level that may influence the lung development has a potential effect on the disease burden of respiratory diseases related to ambient PM(2.5) exposure in later life. The results would provide theoretical basis to protect vulnerable population defined by birth season when exploring the adverse effects of ambient PM(2.5) in the respiratory health. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12199-021-00994-6.