Air Pollutants and Their Impact on Chronic Diseases—A Retrospective Study in Bucharest, Romania

Air Pollutants and Their Impact on Chronic Diseases—A Retrospective Study in Bucharest, Romania

Air pollution is a serious problem in Romania, with the country ranking 13th among the most polluted countries in Europe in the 2021 World Air Quality Report. Despite the recognized impact of pollutants on health, there has been a lack of large-scale studies conducted in Romania. This study investig...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Atmosphere Vol. 14; no. 5; p. 867
Main Authors: Mahler, Beatrice, Baiceanu, Dragos, Panciu, Traian Constantin, Florea, Radu Marian, Iorga, Ana Luiza, Gnat, Marcin, German, Cornelia Florina, Pârvu, Simona, Paraschiv, Dorel, Manea, Daniela, Mihai, Mihaela, Ibraim, Elmira, Timar, Bogdan, Mihaltan, Florin Dumitru
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Basel MDPI AG 01-05-2023
Subjects:
Air pollution
Air quality
Air quality management
Asthma
Cardiovascular diseases
Causes of
Chronic diseases
Chronic illnesses
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
Cold season
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
Diseases
Emission standards
Environmental aspects
Environmental impact
Environmental policy
Health aspects
Hospitalization
hospitalizations
International regulations
Metabolic disorders
Metropolitan areas
Outdoor air quality
Ozone
Pandemics
Particulate emissions
Particulate matter
Pathology
PM10
PM2.5
Pollutants
Public health
Quality of life
Statistical analysis
Statistical correlation
Suspended particulate matter
Urban areas
Vascular diseases
Romania
Europe
Bucharest Romania
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Summary:Air pollution is a serious problem in Romania, with the country ranking 13th among the most polluted countries in Europe in the 2021 World Air Quality Report. Despite the recognized impact of pollutants on health, there has been a lack of large-scale studies conducted in Romania. This study investigated the impact of air pollutants on patients with chronic respiratory, cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, or metabolic diseases in Bucharest and its metropolitan area from 20 August 2018 to 1 June 2022. The daily limit values for particulate matter PM10 and PM2.5 were exceeded every month, especially during the cold season, with a decrease during the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. A significant statistical correlation was found between the monthly average values of PM2.5 and PM10 and hospitalizations for respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. A 10 µg/m3 increase in monthly average values resulted in a 40–60% increase in admissions for each type of pathology, translating to more than 2000 admissions for each pathology for the study period. This study highlights the urgent need for national and local measures to ensure a cleaner environment and enhance public health in Romania according to international regulations.
ISSN:2073-4433
2073-4433
DOI:10.3390/atmos14050867