Association of antenatal and early childhood air pollution and greenspace exposures with respiratory pathogen upper airway acquisitions and respiratory health outcomes.

Jan 22, 2024

Experts: Mari D Takashima,Keith Grimwood,Dwan Vilcins,Luke D Knibbs,Peter D Sly,Stephen B Lambert,Robert S Ware

The association of air pollution and greenspace with respiratory pathogen acquisition and respiratory health was investigated in a community-based birth-cohort of 158 Australian children. Weekly nasal swabs and daily symptom-diaries were collected for 2-years, with annual reviews from ages 3-7-years. Annual exposure to fine-particulate-matter (PM), nitrogen-dioxide (NO), and normalised-difference-vegetation-index (NDVI) was estimated for pregnancy and the first 2-years-of-life. We examined rhinovirus, any respiratory virus, , and detections in the first 3-months-of-life, age at initial pathogen detection, wheezing in the first 2-years, and asthma at ages 5-7-years. Our findings suggest that higher NDVI was associated with fewer viral and detections in the first 3-months, while increased PM and NO were linked to earlier symptomatic rhinovirus and detections, respectively. However, no associations were observed with wheezing or asthma. Early-life exposure to air pollution and greenspace may influence early-life respiratory pathogen acquisition and illness. .

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ABOUT THE EXPERTS

Mari D Takashima,Keith Grimwood,Dwan Vilcins,Luke D Knibbs,Peter D Sly,Stephen B Lambert,Robert S Ware

Mari D Takashima

Menzies Health Institute Queensland and School of Medicine and Dentistry, Griffith University, Gold Coast, Australia.

Paediatric Nursing and Patient Safety, Child Health Research Centre, The University of Queensland, South Brisbane, Australia.

Keith Grimwood

Menzies Health Institute Queensland and School of Medicine and Dentistry, Griffith University, Gold Coast, Australia.

Departments of Infectious Diseases and Paediatrics, Gold Coast Health, Gold Coast, Australia.

Dwan Vilcins

Children’s Health and Environment Program, Child Health Research Centre, The University of Queensland, South Brisbane, Australia.

Luke D Knibbs

Sydney School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney 2006, New South Wales, Australia.

Public Health Research Analytics and Methods for Evidence, Public Health Unit, Sydney Local Health District, Camperdown, Australia.

Peter D Sly

Children’s Health and Environment Program, Child Health Research Centre, The University of Queensland, South Brisbane, Australia.

Australian Infectious Diseases Research Centre, The University of Queensland, Queensland, Australia.

Stephen B Lambert

UQ Centre for Clinical Research, The University of Queensland, Herston, Australia.

National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance, Westmead, Australia.

Robert S Ware

Menzies Health Institute Queensland and School of Medicine and Dentistry, Griffith University, Gold Coast, Australia.