Relationship between air pollution and hospitalizations for congestive heart failure in elderly people in the city of Sao Paulo.

To evaluate the effects of air pollutants on hospitalizations of elderly people for congestive heart failure (CHF) in the city of Sao Paulo, stratified by sex, exploring lag structures, from 2000 to 2013. Ecological time series study using information on hospitalization of elderly patients for CHF (ICD-10th: I50) obtained from DATASUS for the city of Sao Paulo. Information on O3, PM10, NO2, SO2, CO, temperature and humidity was obtained from CETESB. Descriptive analyses, Pearson correlation, and generalized linear Poisson regression model were applied to estimate the effects of pollutants. The interquartile variations of O3 (52.45 μg/m3), PM10 (24.28 μg/m3), NO2 (7.63 μg/m3), SO2 (50.22 μg/m3), and CO (1.28 ppm) were associated with increased hospitalizations for CHF. Air pollutants continue to be a factor that contributes to the increase in the number of hospitalizations due to CHF.