Prevalence of respiratory conditions among schoolchildren exposed to different levels of air pollutants in the Haifa Bay Area, Israel

Journal Article · Thu Nov 01 04:00:00 EST 1990 · Environmental Health Perspectives; (USA)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1289/ehp.9089225· OSTI ID:5848407

Goren, A I; Hellman, S; Brenner, S ^[1]; Rishpon, S ^[2]; Egoz, N

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1. Tel Aviv Univ Sackler School of Medicine (Israel)
2. Haifa District Health Office (Israel)

During spring 1984, 2,334 second and 2,000 fifth-grade schoolchildren living in three Haifa Bay areas on the eastern Mediterranean coast with different levels of air pollution were studied. The parents of these children filled out American Thoracic Society and National Heart and Lung Institute health questionnaires, and the children performed the following pulmonary function tests (PFT): FVC, FEV{sub 1}, FEV{sub 1}/FEV, PEF, FEF{sub 50}, and FEF{sub 75}. A trend of higher prevalence of most reported respiratory symptoms was found for schoolchildren growing up in the medium and high pollution areas as compared with the low pollution area. Part of the reported respiratory diseases were significantly more common among children from the high pollution area. Models fitted for the respiratory conditions that differed significantly among the three areas of residence also included background variables that could be responsible for these differences. Relative risk values, which were calculated from the logistic models, were in the range of 1.38 for sputum with cold and 1.81 for sputum without cold for children from the high pollution area as compared with 1.00 for children from the low pollution area. All the measured values of PFT were within the normal range. There was no consistent trend of reduced pulmonary function that characterized any residential area.

• OSTI ID: 5848407
• Journal Information: Environmental Health Perspectives; (USA), Journal Name: Environmental Health Perspectives; (USA) Vol. 89; ISSN 0091-6765; ISSN EVHPA
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

560300* -- Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
AGE GROUPS
AIR POLLUTION
ASIA
BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
BIOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS
BODY
CHILDREN
CLEARANCE
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
DISEASE INCIDENCE
DISEASES
EXCRETION
FUNCTIONS
ISRAEL
LUNG CLEARANCE
LUNGS
MIDDLE EAST
ORGANS
POLLUTION
RESPIRATORY SYSTEM
RESPIRATORY SYSTEM DISEASES
RISK ASSESSMENT