Identification of Surveillance Procedures for Diseases and Deaths Potentially Caused by Air Pollution and Possible Solutions as a Proposal for a Binational Surveillance System: A Case Study of Mexicali B.C., México-Imperial Valley, United States

Abstract

In this paper, an integrative analysis is conducted for both sides of the border of Mexicali B.C. and Imperial Valley, regarding the official procedures and ways in which the collection, organization and disposal of data is carried out for the following: pollutant molecules such as PM2.5, PM10, CO, and O3; meteorological data such as temperature and relative humidity; data produced by epidemiological surveillance of acute respiratory infections; and deaths from all causes minus external ones. Some points around the binational surveillance system, raised in a technical report, are collected, giving continuity to the previous work carried out on this matter. Challenges are identified, recommendations are made, and possible solutions are offered to achieve a binational, unified and integrative system that centralizes meteorological, clinical, and pollution data, and that guarantees the quality and expeditious availability of the data concerning of the effects of air pollution on respiratory diseases and/or natural deaths of the local population. According to our results, air monitoring in Mexicali, clinical data on acute respiratory infections, morbidity, and mortality records must be improved, as well as the cooperation and coordination with the institutions of Imperial Valley. Finally, we show that despite the deficiencies and limitations found in the data generated in the locality, especially data on pollution and clinical data, it is possible, with great effort, to build models that measure and explain the effects of air pollution on health. Examples include the relative risk of death from exposure to PM2.5, PM10, CO, and O3; particulate matter air pollution effects on activation of pulmonary tuberculosis; the association between personal PM10 exposure and pulmonary function; and the estimation of costs and public health benefits by PM10 mitigation, among others.