Seasonal Assessment of particulate matter (PM2.5) and its contribution towards mortality in Lahore city, Pakistan

Abstract

Air pollution is one of the several environmental problems urbanization brings. One of the air contaminants that impacts human health is particulate matter (PM). The current study aimed to assess the relative risks and attributable proportions. It can be brought on by human exposure to PM2.5 and PM10 (PM with aerodynamic diameters ≤ 2.5 μm and ≤ 10 μm, respectively). AirQ+ software was used to modify the health effects of particles on human beings in terms of attributable percentage (AP). Environmental Protection Department (EPD), Punjab Bureau of Statistics, and Punjab Health Department provided input data on particulate concentration, health, and population. Findings indicated that PM2.5 with an average concentration of 106 ug/m3 per year makes up 54.04 % of the attributable proportion (AP) of age 30+ adults, all-cause mortality rate, and 46.31% AP of age 30+ adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). AP to stroke mortality in adults age 25+ was 65.01% (BI-150), and 38.28% (BI-630) was in children aged 0-5 years, contributing to acute lower respiratory infection (ALRI) mortality. The attributable proportion to ischemic heart diseases (IHD) in adults age 25+ was found to be 56.19%. It was also found that PM10 with an average concentration of 163 ug/m3 contributes 44.05% AP to infant post-neonatal. There must be appropriate mitigating strategies for pollution reduction concentration to reduce the potential adverse effects of air on health particulates.