COVID-19 Higher Mortality in Chinese Regions With Chronic Exposure to Lower Air Quality.

Riccardo Pansini,Davide Fornacca

doi:10.3389/fpubh.2020.597753

Abstract

We investigated the geographical character of the COVID-19 infection in China and correlated it with satellite- and ground-based measurements of air quality. Controlling for population density, we found more viral infections in those prefectures (U.S. county equivalent) afflicted by high Carbon Monoxide, Formaldehyde, PM 2.5, and Nitrogen Dioxide values. Higher mortality was also correlated with relatively poor air quality. When summarizing the results at a greater administrative level, we found that the 10 provinces (U.S. state equivalent) with the highest rate of mortality by COVID-19, were often the most polluted but not the most densely populated. Air pollution appears to be a risk factor for the incidence of this disease, despite the conventionally apprehended influence of human mobility on disease dynamics from the site of first appearance, Wuhan. The raw correlations reported here should be interpreted in a broader context, accounting for the growing evidence reported by several other studies. These findings warn communities and policymakers on the implications of long-term air pollution exposure as an ecological, multi-scale public health issue.

Highlights

COVID-19, initially detected in China and rapidly spread to the rest of the world, has ignited a pandemic causing exorbitant human and economic cost [1]
The present study suggests a strong association between the incidence of COVID-19 and chronic exposure to air pollution in China
Comparative analyses made in this study indicate the role of air pollution as a critical risk cofactor for COVID-19 in China, with a stronger influence of Formaldehyde and Carbon Monoxide levels

Summary

INTRODUCTION

COVID-19, initially detected in China and rapidly spread to the rest of the world, has ignited a pandemic causing exorbitant human and economic cost [1]. The dataset of COVID-19 cases and deaths analyzed in this study captured the first and unique wave of SARS-CoV-2 infection for this country (19 December 2019–23 May 2020) It includes the 17 April update, when an increase of 1,290 casualties was reported, following a revised WHO guideline, showing a drastic rise of about 50% from the prior figure. Air pollutants collected from ground stations were PM 2.5, PM 10, O3, NO2, SO2, and CO Correlation and significance analyses between air pollution, population, and the three COVID-19 variables (infections/100,000 inhabitants, fatalities/100,000 inhabitants, mortality rate) were performed for the prefecture-level dataset using non-parametric Kendall rank correlation coefficient because of the distributions of COVID-19 and population variables being mostly skewed.

RESULTS

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT