Abstract:
Background Exposure to high concentration of ozone (O3) can lead to elevated morbidity and mortality due to cardiovascular diseases (CVD). Few studies in China are available on the combined effects of temperature and O3 on CVD.
Objective To clarify the short-term exposure effects of temperature and O3 pollution on residents with cardiovascular diseases in the Linyi City.
Methods Based on the O3 concentration monitoring data, daily outpatient visit data of CVD, and hourly and daily air quality data in Linyi City from 2014 to 2019, a distributed lag non-linear model (DLNM) was used to study the relative risks (RR) and lag effects of temperature and O3 on the outpatient visits of CVD in Linyi City, and the effects of the interaction between temperature and O3 on cardiovascular diseases were also examined.
Results The lag effect of O3 exposure on CVD was non-linear, with a peak RR (95%CI) value 1.39 (1.25, 1.55) at O3 concentrations of 100 μg·m−3 and a significantly higher risk of CVD on the days of high O3 concentration (>180 μg·m−3). The modifying effects of gender and age on CVD showed that the RR (95%CI) was greater for males 1.41 (1.26, 1.58) than for females 1.38 (1.22, 1.57), and higher for those aged >65 years 1.38 (1.02, 1.55) than those aged ≤65 years 1.22 (1.06, 1.38). Males and adults older than 65 were more sensitive to O3 exposure. The modifying effect of temperature on CVD combined with O3 exposure suggested that the risk associated with warm-season O3 exposure was present across all concentration levels. In cold season, the RR of O3 exposure was significant at low and medium concentrations (P25, P50) at 1-3 days of cumulative lag exposure (lag01–lag03), whereas the RR value was lower than that in the warm season.
Conclusion O3 pollution poses an increased risk of outpatient visit due to CVD in Linyi, with variations observed based on gender and age. The impact of O3 exposure on CVD is modulated by air temperature. Specifically, elevated temperature combined with high O3 concentration during warm season escalate the outpatient visits due to CVD, with the outpatient visits being substantially higher than that observed in cold season at lower temperatures. Conversely, in cold season at lower temperatures, the outpatient visits associated with O3 exposure is more pronounced at lower temperatures. Furthermore, the effect of low temperatures in cold season on CVD surpasses that of O3 exposure.