Abstract
Objective
The aim of this study was to examine the impacts of short-term exposure to air pollutants on hospitalizations for mental disorders (MDs) in Qingdao, a Chinese coastal city, and to assess the corresponding hospitalization risk and economic cost.
Methods
Daily data on MD hospitalizations and environmental variables were collected from January 1, 2015, to December 31, 2019. An overdispersed generalized additive model was used to estimate the association between air pollution and MD hospitalizations. The cost of illness method was applied to calculate the corresponding economic burden.
Results
With each 10 μg/m3 increase in the concentration of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) at lag05, inhalable particulate matter (PM10) at lag0, sulfur dioxide (SO2) at lag06 and ozone (O3) at lag0, the corresponding relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were 1.0182 (1.0035–1.0332), 1.0063 (1.0001–1.0126), 1.0997 (1.0200–1.1885) and 1.0099 (1.0005–1.0194), respectively. However, no significant effects of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) or carbon monoxide (CO) were found. Stratified analysis showed that males were susceptible to SO2 and O3, while females were susceptible to PM2.5. Older individuals (≥ 45 years) were more vulnerable to air pollutants (PM2.5, PM10, SO2 and O3) than younger individuals (< 45 years). Taking the Global Air Quality Guidelines 2021 as a reference, 8.71% (2,168 cases) of MD hospitalizations were attributable to air pollutant exposure, with a total economic burden of 154.36 million RMB.
Conclusion
Short-term exposure to air pollution was associated with an increased risk of hospitalization for MDs. The economic advantages of further reducing air pollution are enormous.
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Data availability
The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
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YC and YM wrote the manuscript and analysed the data. XL collected the data. YM, XL and JY reviewed the results and provided guidelines for presentation and interpretation. All of the authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
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This was a retrospective study, and there was no direct contact with the patients. Consequently, informed consent was not necessary. Our protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee of Qingdao Mental Health Center and complied with the Declaration of Helsinki.
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Cheng, Y., Meng, Y., Li, X. et al. Effects of ambient air pollution on the hospitalization risk and economic burden of mental disorders in Qingdao, China. Int Arch Occup Environ Health 97, 109–120 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00420-023-02030-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00420-023-02030-2