nitrogen-dioxide and Heart-Arrest

Epidemiologic studies have reported associations between fine particulate air pollution and cardiovascular mortality or hospitalization for cardiac events. However the evidence regarding the association between air pollution and acute cardiac events, such as out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, is inconsistent.. We investigated the association between particulate matter (PM) air pollution and out-of-hospital cardiac arrest using a case-crossover study of adults (age, 35+ years) in Melbourne, Australia. We included 8434 cases identified through the Victorian Cardiac Arrest Registry from 2003 through 2006. We excluded arrests with an obvious preceding noncardiac event such as trauma, poisoning, or drowning, leaving only those events that were presumed to have cardiac etiology. Air pollution concentrations obtained from a central monitoring site were used for day of the arrest and for lag 1, lag 2, and lag 3, including the average lag 0-1.. An interquartile range increase of 4.26 microg/m3 in PM2.5 over 2 days (lag 0-1) was associated with an increase in risk for an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest of 3.6% (95% confidence interval = 1.3% to 6.0%). PM10 and carbon monoxide also showed associations, but not as strong as for PM2.5. Longer lag periods did not show such strong relationships. There was no association of these cardiac events with ozone, sulfur dioxide, or nitrogen dioxide in any lag period. Individuals age 65-74 years old were most susceptible to PM2.5 exposure, while those 75 years and older had the lowest risk.. These findings support an association between daily average PM2.5 concentrations and an increased risk of out-of-hospital cardiac arrests.

Topics: Adult; Age Factors; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Air Pollution; Carbon Monoxide; Confidence Intervals; Female; Heart Arrest; Humans; Logistic Models; Male; Middle Aged; Nitrogen Dioxide; Ozone; Particulate Matter; Poisson Distribution; Proportional Hazards Models; Registries; Risk Factors; Sex Factors; Sulfur Dioxide; Victoria

Air pollution has been associated with ventricular arrhythmias in patients with implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) for exposure periods of 24-48 h. Only two studies have investigated exposure periods <24 h. We aimed to explore such effects during the 2 and 24 preceding hours as well as in relation to distance from the place of the event to the air pollution monitor.. We used a case-crossover design to investigate the effects of particulate matter <10 microm in diameter (PM10) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in 211 patients with ICD devices in Gothenburg and Stockholm, Sweden. Events interpreted as ventricular arrhythmias were downloaded from the ICDs, and air pollution data were collected from urban background monitors. We found an association between 2 h moving averages of PM10 and ventricular arrhythmia [odds ratio (OR) 1.31, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.00-1.72], whereas the OR for 24 h moving averages was 1.24 (95% CI 0.87-1.76). Corresponding ORs for events occurring closest to the air pollution monitor were 1.76 (95% CI 1.18-2.61) and 1.74 (95% CI 1.07-2.84), respectively. Events occurring in Gothenburg showed stronger associations than in Stockholm.. Moderate increases in air pollution appear to be associated with ventricular arrhythmias in ICD patients already after 2 h, although future studies including larger numbers of events are required to confirm these findings. Representative geographical exposure classification seems important in studies of these effects.

Topics: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Air Pollution; Arrhythmias, Cardiac; Cross-Over Studies; Death, Sudden, Cardiac; Defibrillators, Implantable; Environmental Exposure; Environmental Monitoring; Female; Heart Arrest; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Nitrogen Dioxide; Odds Ratio; Oxidants, Photochemical; Particulate Matter; Sweden; Time Factors