Association between fine particulate air pollution and hospital admissions for chest pain in a subtropical city: Taipei, Taiwan

ABSTRACTThis study determined the association between fine particles (PM2.5) levels and hospital admissions for chest pain (CP) in Taipei, Taiwan. Hospital admissions for CP and ambient air pollution data for Taipei were obtained for the period 2009–2013. The relative risk of hospital admissions was estimated using a case-crossover approach, after controlling for weather variables, day of the week, seasonality, and long-term time trends. For single-pollutant models (without adjustment for other pollutants), increased frequency of CP admissions was significantly associated with PM2.5 levels on warm days (>23°C), with an interquartile range rise correlated with a 15% (95% confidence interval = 11–31%) elevation in number of CP admissions. In two-pollutant models, PM2.5 remained significant after inclusion of each of the other four pollutants: sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), carbon monoxide (CO), and ozone (O3) on warm days. Generally, no marked associations were observed between PM2.5 levels a...