Abstract
This study investigated the relationship of weather and air pollution with the onset of Bell’s palsy. The Korean Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service-National Sample Cohort (HIRA-NSC) data from 2002 through 2013 were used. The 3,935 Bell’s palsy patients were matched with 15,740 control participants. The meteorological data, including daily mean temperature (°C), daily mean highest temperature (°C), daily mean lowest temperature (°C), daily mean temperature difference (°C), relative humidity (%), spot atmospheric pressure (hPa), sulfur dioxide (SO2) (ppm), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) (ppm), ozone (O3) (ppm), carbon monoxide (CO) (ppm), and PM10 (particulate matter ≤ 10 μg/m3) for 60 days, 30 days, 14 days, 7 days, and 3 days prior to the index date were analyzed for Bell’s palsy cases and controls. Conditional logistic regression analysis was used to estimate the odds ratios (ORs) of the association between the meteorological data and Bell’s palsy. The mean NO2 and PM10 concentrations for 60 days were higher, while that of O3 was lower in the Bell’s palsy group than in the control group (both P < 0.001). The Bell’s palsy group showed 16.63-fold higher odds of NO2 for 60 days (0.1 ppm) than the control group (95% CI = 10.18–27.16, P < 0.001). The ORs of PM10, and O3 for 60 days showed inconsistent results according to the included variables. Bell’s palsy was related to high concentrations of NO2.
Highlights
Bell’s palsy is defined as idiopathic peripheral facial paralysis[1]
The odds ratio (OR) of the 60-day NO2 exposure level (0.1 ppm) prior to the onset of Bell’s palsy was 16.63
The OR of the 60-day PM10 exposure level (10 μg/m3) prior to the onset of Bell’s palsy was 1.07 (95% confidence interval [95% CI] = 1.04–1.11, P < 0.001), while that of O3 was 0.18
Summary
Bell’s palsy is defined as idiopathic peripheral facial paralysis[1]. The incidence of Bell’s palsy is approximately 11–40 per 100,000 person/year worldwide[1]. Viral infection and vascular compromise are thought to be related to Bell’s palsy[3]. Previous studies reported conflicting results regarding the association of Bell’s palsy and cold exposure[3,10,11,12,13]. Some researchers reported a high incidence of Bell’s palsy in cold weather[10,11]. To the best of our knowledge, no previous study has evaluated the effect of air pollution on Bell’s palsy. The hypothesis of the present study was that meteorological conditions, including air pollution, could increase the incidence of Bell’s palsy. To test this hypothesis, the exposures of patients with Bell’s palsy and a control group to meteorological conditions were compared
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