Several studies have reported increases in respiratory hospital admissions among infants in relation to increased ambient pollution concentrations (Barnett et al. 2005; Burnett et al. 1994; Dales et al. 2006; Gouveia and Fletcher 2000a).
The lung is the major target of ambient air pollution and the relationship between increased ambient air pollution and adverse health effects in children, individuals with asthma, and vulnerable adults is well documented (Nel 2005).
An interaction between air pollution and pollen loads is expected, e.g. thunderstorms, extreme precipitation events, increased ground level ozone concentrations, increased ambient air pollution from natural and anthropogenic sources and probably an increasing number of fires (19).
Epidemiological studies have consistently shown associations between increased ambient air pollution and increased cardio-pulmonary mortality, morbidity and emergency department visits [ 1].
Background: Evidence suggests that increased ambient air pollution concentrations are associated with health effects, although relatively few studies have specifically examined infants.
C onclusions: Increased ambient O3 pollution was associated with increased risk of episodes of rapid ventricular response due to PAF, thereby suggesting that community air pollution may be a precipitant of these events.
Exposure for a short period of 3 days to increased ambient air pollution was also reported as a major factor for the increased disease outcomes (Dockery et al. 2005).
Evidence from epidemiologic studies shows a consistent association between increased ambient air pollution and increased daily hospital admission (Lee et al. 2007; Santos et al. 2008; Schwartz 1999; Zanobetti and Schwartz 2006) and premature death (Pope et al. 2004; Schwartz 1994).
Previous air pollution birth outcome research in Brisbane failed to find reductions in neonate birth weight, head circumference, and length associated with increased ambient air pollution during pregnancy, and this failure may be caused by the maternal exposure estimates being derived from a network average across five monitoring sites (Hansen et al. 2007).
Increased ambient levels of air pollution may be associated with an increased risk for LBW.
