Exposure of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Patients to Particulate Matter: Relationships between Personal and Ambient Air Concentrations

• Published in: Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association (1995) Vol. 50; no. 7; pp. 1081 - 1094
• Main Authors: Ebelt, Stefanie T., Petkau, A. John, Vedal, Sverre, Fisher, Teri V., Brauer, Michael
• Format: Journal Article Conference Proceeding
• Language: English
• Published: Pittsburgh, PA Taylor & Francis Group 01.07.2000; Air & Waste Management Association
• Subjects: Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Air Pollution - adverse effects; Applied sciences; Atmospheric pollution; Biological and medical sciences; Environmental Exposure - analysis; Epidemiology; Exact sciences and technology; Female; General aspects; Humans; Lung Diseases, Obstructive - etiology; Male; Medical sciences; Methodology; Middle Aged; Particle Size; Pollutants physicochemistry study: properties, effects, reactions, transport and distribution; Pollution; Public health. Hygiene; Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine; Reproducibility of Results; Risk Factors; Canada; British Columbia; North America; America; Human; Lung disease; Correlation; Respiratory disease; Personal sampling; Air quality; Exposure; Urban area; Regression analysis; Mean value; Sulfates; Epidemiology; Suspended particle; Ambient air concentration; Chronic; Health and environment; Surveillance; Content; Risk factor; Aerosols; Bronchus disease; Air pollution; Obstructive pulmonary disease; Sampling
• ISSN: 1096-2247; 2162-2906
• DOI: 10.1080/10473289.2000.10464166

Most time-series studies of particulate air pollution and acute health outcomes assess exposure of the study population using fixed-site outdoor measurements. To address the issue of exposure misclassification, we evaluate the relationship between ambient particle concentrations and personal exposures of a population expected to be at risk of particle health effects. Sampling was conducted within the Vancouver metropolitan area during April-September 1998. Sixteen subjects (non-smoking, ages 54-86) with physician-diagnosed chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) wore personal PM 2 5 monitors for seven 24-hr periods, randomly spaced approximately 1.5 weeks apart. Time-activity logs and dwelling characteristics data were also obtained for each subject. Daily 24-hr ambient PM 10 and PM 2.5 concentrations were measured at five fixed sites spaced throughout the study region. SO 4 2- , which is found almost exclusively in the fine particle fraction and which does not have major indoor sources, was measured in all PM 2 5 samples as an indicator of accumulation mode particu-late matter of ambient origin.