Excess pneumonia deaths linked to engine exhaustApril 15, 2008Atmospheric pollutants and mortalities in English local authority areas Engine exhaust fumes are linked to excess deaths from pneumonia across England, suggests research published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health. The annual death toll is comparable to that caused by the London smog in 1952, suggests the author. Data on atmospheric emissions, published causes of death, and expected causes of death for 352 local authority jurisdictions in England were combined to calculate the impact of pollution on death rates between 1996 and 2004. Levels of air pollution varied substantially among the local authorities. Calculations revealed that pneumonia, peptic ulcer, coronary and rheumatic heart diseases, lung and stomach cancers, and other diseases, were all associated with a range of emissions, as well as deprivation, smoking, binge drinking and a northern location. Further analysis, allowing for the effects of the social factors, showed that pneumonia deaths were strongly and independently linked to emissions, with the exception of sulphur dioxide from coal burning. The primary culprits were emissions associated with oil combustion, including vehicle exhaust fumes. During the eight years of the study there were almost 390.000 deaths from pneumonia. And 35 local authorities accounted for almost 54,000 of these deaths, or around15,,000 more than would be expected. "Total annual losses as a result of air pollution probably approach those of the 1952 London smog," writes the author. Because the links were so strong across all categories of exposure and deaths were so much higher than would be expected, this suggests that these pollutants directly damage lung tissue, he says. Excess deaths from the progressive lung disease COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) and rheumatic heart disease, both of which are characterised by failing lung function, could also be precipitated by engine exhaust, he adds. BMJ-British Medical Journal |
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| Related Pneumonia Current Events and Pneumonia News Articles Amid the flu epidemic, don't forget RSV in young children Influenza, particularly H1N1, has understandably captured the attention of public health officials, the media and the public. Prioritizing low-cost, simple health measures would save 2.5 million child lives a year Almost a third of the children under age five who die each year could be saved if governments rebalance health spending to ensure low-cost, simple interventions such as safe water and hygiene, bed nets and basic maternal and newborn care, leading aid agency World Vision said today. Currently, 8.8 million children a year die before age five, most of preventable causes. Fewer emergency patients seen within recommended time frame One in four emergency department patients in 2006 waited longer to be evaluated by a clinician than recommended at triage, an increase from one in five in 1997. Possible help in fight against muscle-wasting disease A compound already used to treat pneumonia could become a new therapy for an inherited muscular wasting disease, according to researchers at the University of Oregon and the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry in New York. Henry Ford Hospital study: A MRSA strain linked to high death rates A strain of MRSA that causes bloodstream infections is five times more lethal than other strains and has shown to have some resistance to the potent antibiotic drug vancomycin used to treat MRSA, according to a Henry Ford Hospital study. Commentary warns of unexpected consequences of proton pump inhibitor use in reflux disease Despite being highly effective and beneficial for many patients, unexpected consequences are emerging in patients who are prescribed proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) for reflux diseases. Scientists discover influenza's Achilles heel: Antioxidants As the nation copes with a shortage of vaccines for H1N1 influenza, a team of Alabama researchers have raised hopes that they have found an Achilles' heel for all strains of the flu-antioxidants. Lessons from flu seasons past Pregnant women who catch the flu are at serious risk for flu-related complications, including death, and that risk far outweighs the risk of possible side effects from injectable vaccines containing killed virus, according to an extensive review of published research and data from previous flu seasons. Older Patients with Dementia at Increased Risk for Flu Mortality An epidemiological study on pneumonia and influenza (P&I) in adults age 65 and over reports that patients with dementia are diagnosed with flu less frequently, have shorter hospital stays, and have a fifty percent higher rate of death than those without dementia. OMRF scientists discover promising new path for treating traumas A discovery by scientists at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation could help save lives threatened by traumatic injuries like those sustained in car crashes or on the battlefield. The work also holds potential for treating severe infectious diseases and diabetes. More Pneumonia Current Events and Pneumonia News Articles |
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