Effects of long-term exposure to ambient fine particulate air pollution on all-cause mortality in Taiwan

Abstract

ABSTRACT According to the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Integrated Science Assessment (ISA), there is a causal relationship between fine particulate matter (PM2.5) exposure and increased mortality rates. A similar association was also reported by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). While many studies are available on this relationship between PM exposure and elevated mortality frequency in Europe and North America, there are limited investigations in Asia. Thus, the aim of this study was to perform an ecological investigation to determine the relationship between exposure to ambient PM2.5 levels and all-cause mortality in 66 in Taiwan municipalities. To undertake this investigation, annual PM2.5 levels and age-standardized all-cause mortality rates were calculated for male and female residents of these areas from 2010 to 2020. Weighted-multiple regression analyses were used to obtain adjusted risk ratio (RR) controlling for possible confounding by urbanization level, physician density, and annual mean household income. Annual PM2.5 levels of each municipality were divided into tertiles. Data demonstrated that men residing in areas with intermediate tertile PM2.5 levels (21.06 to 27.29 µg/m3) and the highest tertiles levels (27.30–33.11 µg/m3) exhibited adjusted RRs of 1.06 (95% CI = 1.03–1.08) and 1.13 (95% CI = 1.10–1.16), respectively. Women in these locations displayed a similar risk, 1.03 (0.99–1.06) and 1.07 (1.04–1.11), respectively. These findings indicate that ambient exposure to PM2.5 increased risk for all-cause mortality rates in both men and women in Taiwan during this time period.