Acute Effects of Air Pollution on Ischemic Heart Disease Hospitalizations: A Population-Based Time-Series Study in Wuhan, China, 2017–2018

Evidence of the acute effects of air pollutants on ischemic heart disease (IHD) hospitalizations based on the entire population of a megacity in central China is lacking. All IHD hospitalization records from 2017 to 2018 were obtained from the Wuhan Information Center of Health and Family Planning. Daily air pollutant concentrations and meteorological data were synchronously collected from the Wuhan Environmental Protection Bureau. A time-series study using generalized additive models was conducted to systematically examine the associations between air pollutants and IHD hospitalizations. Stratified analyses by gender, age, season, hypertension, diabetes, and hyperlipidemia were performed. In total, 139,616 IHD hospitalizations were included. Short-term exposure to air pollutants was positively associated with IHD hospitalizations. The age group ≥76 was at higher exposure risk, and the associations appeared to be more evident in cold seasons. PM(2.5) and PM(10) appeared to have greater effects on males and those without hypertension or diabetes, whereas NO(2) and SO(2) had greater effects on females and those with hypertension or diabetes. The risk of IHD hospitalization due to air pollutants was greater in people without hyperlipidemia. Our study provides new evidence of the effects of air pollution on the increased incidence of IHD in central China.