Increases in ambient particulate matter concentrations may lead to increased emergency care or urgent care visits for patients with asthma, according to a study in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society.
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The researchers observed a 3.1% increase in hospital counts for all patients with asthma for each 15-µg/m³ increase in three-day averaged ambient particulate matter. Asthma hospital visits increased by 16.8 and 65.8% when the 3-day average exceeded 50µg/m³ and 100µg/m³, respectively.
In children, with each 15-µg/m³ increase in three-day averaged ambient particulate matter, the odds of one asthma event requiring an emergency/urgent care visit increased 5%.
