| 1. |
- Orru, Hans, et al.
(författare)
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Health impacts of PM2.5 originating from residential wood combustion in four nordic cities
- 2022
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Ingår i: BMC Public Health. - : BioMed Central. - 1471-2458. ; 22:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Residential wood combustion (RWC) is one of the largest sources of fine particles (PM2.5) in the Nordic cities. The current study aims to calculate the related health effects in four studied city areas in Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Denmark.Methods: Health impact assessment (HIA) was employed as the methodology to quantify the health burden. Firstly, the RWC induced annual average PM2.5 concentrations from local sources were estimated with air pollution dispersion modelling. Secondly, the baseline mortality rates were retrieved from the national health registers. Thirdly, the concentration-response function from a previous epidemiological study was applied. For the health impact calculations, the WHO-developed tool AirQ + was used.Results: Amongst the studied city areas, the local RWC induced PM2.5 concentration was lowest in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area (population-weighted annual average concentration 0.46 µg m− 3) and highest in Oslo (2.77 µg m− 3). Each year, particulate matter attributed to RWC caused around 19 premature deaths in Umeå (95% CI: 8–29), 85 in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area (95% CI: 35–129), 78 in Copenhagen (95% CI: 33–118), and 232 premature deaths in Oslo (95% CI: 97–346). The average loss of life years per premature death case was approximately ten years; however, in the whole population, this reflects on average a decrease in life expectancy by 0.25 (0.10–0.36) years. In terms of the relative contributions in cities, life expectancy will be decreased by 0.10 (95% CI: 0.05–0.16), 0.18 (95% CI: 0.07–0.28), 0.22 (95% CI: 0.09–0.33) and 0.63 (95% CI: 0.26–0.96) years in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, Umeå, Copenhagen and Oslo respectively. The number of years of life lost was lowest in Umeå (172, 95% CI: 71–260) and highest in Oslo (2458, 95% CI: 1033–3669).Conclusions: All four Nordic city areas have a substantial amount of domestic heating, and RWC is one of the most significant sources of PM2.5. This implicates a substantial predicted impact on public health in terms of premature mortality. Thus, several public health measures are needed to reduce the RWC emissions.
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| 2. |
- Olstrup, Henrik, et al.
(författare)
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A Multi-Pollutant Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) Based on Short-Term Respiratory Effects in Stockholm, Sweden
- 2019
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Ingår i: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. - : MDPI AG. - 1661-7827 .- 1660-4601. ; 16:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this study, an Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) for Stockholm is introduced as a tool to capture the combined effects associated with multi-pollutant exposure. Public information regarding the expected health risks associated with current or forecasted concentrations of pollutants and pollen can be very useful for sensitive persons when planning their outdoor activities. For interventions, it can also be important to know the contribution from pollen and the specific air pollutants, judged to cause the risk. The AQHI is based on an epidemiological analysis of asthma emergency department visits (AEDV) and urban background concentrations of NOx, O-3, PM10 and birch pollen in Stockholm during 2001-2005. This analysis showed per 10 mu gm(-3) increase in the mean of same day and yesterday an increase in AEDV of 0.5% (95% CI: -1.2-2.2), 0.3% (95% CI: -1.4-2.0) and 2.5% (95% CI: 0.3-4.8) for NOx, O-3 and PM10, respectively. For birch pollen, the AEDV increased with 0.26% (95% CI: 0.18-0.34) for 10 pollen grainsm(-3). In comparison with the coefficients in a meta-analysis, the mean values of the coefficients obtained in Stockholm are smaller. The mean value of the risk increase associated with PM10 is somewhat smaller than the mean value of the meta-coefficient, while for O-3, it is less than one fifth of the meta-coefficient. We have not found any meta-coefficient using NOx as an indicator of AEDV, but compared to the mean value associated with NO2, our value of NOx is less than half as large. The AQHI is expressed as the predicted percentage increase in AEDV without any threshold level. When comparing the relative contribution of each pollutant to the total AQHI, based on monthly averages concentrations during the period 2015-2017, there is a tangible pattern. The AQHI increase associated with NOx exhibits a relatively even distribution throughout the year, but with a clear decrease during the summer months due to less traffic. O-3 contributes to an increase in AQHI during the spring. For PM10, there is a significant increase during early spring associated with increased suspension of road dust. For birch pollen, there is a remarkable peak during the late spring and early summer during the flowering period. Based on monthly averages, the total AQHI during 2015-2017 varies between 4 and 9%, but with a peak value of almost 16% during the birch pollen season in the spring 2016. Based on daily mean values, the most important risk contribution during the study period is from PM10 with 3.1%, followed by O-3 with 2.0%.
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| 3. |
- Olstrup, Henrik, 1978-
(författare)
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Air pollution and health – Indicators, trends and impacts
- 2019
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This thesis focuses on some of the limitations and difficulties that exist when it comes to quantifying the human health effects that arise as a result of air pollution exposure. The following four issues are particularly analysed and discussed: 1) The measurement techniques used for carbonaceous particles and their lack of consistency; 2) Do the health risks associated with exposure to PM10 depend on the content of elemental carbon in the aerosol?; 3) Trends in air pollutants and the health effects that arise as a result of changed exposure to the measured pollutants; 4) The associations between the measured concentrations of different air pollutants in Stockholm and the daily number deaths; 5) Air quality indicators and health outcomes as basis for an air quality health index (AQHI).The method that has been used is largely based on empirical data analysis, where further statistical processing has been used in order to clarify the scientific issues. The overall conclusions are the following: 1) The health impact assessments associated with exposure to carbonaceous particles would benefit from the introduction of a more uniform measurement technique in order to get more consistent and reliable results; 2) The health risks associated with exposure to PM10 are dependent on the content of elemental carbon; 3) The life expectancy increase associated with decreasing NOx trends during 1990–2015 in Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmo make up as much as about 20 % of the total gain in life expectancy during this period, which clearly shows the beneficial effects related to decreased exposure; 4) The associations between daily mortality and the concentrations of O3 and PM2.5-10 in Stockholm are statistically significant, which does not apply to the exhaust-related pollutants, possibly reflecting behavioural factors affecting the degree of exposure; 5) In comparison with the currently used air quality index (AQI), the air quality health index (AQHI) is a more useful tool in order to address the short-term health effects associated with multi-pollutant exposure to NOx, O3, PM10 and birch pollen.We hope that these findings will be useful from a policy point of view. Introducing a more consistent measurement technique for soot particles would be beneficial in assessing the health effects related to exposure to these particles. The increase in life expectancy associated with decreasing NOx trends shows the benefits from a public health perspective when it comes to introducing emission-reducing measures from traffic. The AQHI would be beneficial to implement in legislation, as it is based on several pollutants, which means that the cumulative health effects associated exposure to several different air pollutants are accounted for.
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| 4. |
- Olstrup, Henrik, 1978-, et al.
(författare)
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Association between Mortality and Short-Term Exposure to Particles, Ozone and Nitrogen Dioxide in Stockholm, Sweden
- 2019
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Ingår i: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. - : MDPI AG. - 1661-7827 .- 1660-4601. ; 16:6
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this study, the effects on daily mortality in Stockholm associated with short-term exposure to ultrafine particles (measured as number of particles with a diameter larger than 4 nm, PNC4), black carbon (BC) and coarse particles (PM2.5–10) have been compared with the effects from more common traffic-pollution indicators (PM10, PM2.5 and NO2) and O3 during the period 2000–2016. Air pollution exposure was estimated from measurements at a 20 m high building in central Stockholm. The associations between daily mortality lagged up to two days (lag 02) and the different air pollutants were modelled by using Poisson regression. The pollutants with the strongest indications of an independent effect on daily mortality were O3, PM2.5–10 and PM10. In the single-pollutant model, an interquartile range (IQR) increase in O3 was associated with an increase in daily mortality of 2.0% (95% CI: 1.1–3.0) for lag 01 and 1.9% (95% CI: 1.0–2.9) for lag 02. An IQR increase in PM2.5–10 was associated with an increase in daily mortality of 0.8% (95% CI: 0.1–1.5) for lag 01 and 1.1% (95% CI: 0.4–1.8) for lag 02. PM10 was associated with a significant increase only at lag 02, with 0.8% (95% CI: 0.08–1.4) increase in daily mortality associated with an IQR increase in the concentration. NO2 exhibits negative associations with mortality. The significant excess risk associated with O3 remained significant in two-pollutant models after adjustments for PM2.5–10, BC and NO2. The significant excess risk associated with PM2.5–10 remained significant in a two-pollutant model after adjustment for NO2. The significantly negative associations for NO2 remained significant in two-pollutant models after adjustments for PM2.5–10, O3 and BC. A potential reason for these findings, where statistically significant excess risks were found for O3, PM2.5–10 and PM10, but not for NO2, PM2.5, PNC4 and BC, is behavioral factors that lead to misclassification in the exposure. The concentrations of O3 and PM2.5–10 are in general highest during sunny and dry days during the spring, when exposure to outdoor air tend to increase, while the opposite applies to NO2, PNC4 and BC, with the highest concentrations during the short winter days with cold weather, when people are less exposed to outdoor air.
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| 5. |
- Olstrup, Henrik, et al.
(författare)
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Daily Mortality in Different Age Groups Associated with Exposure to Particles, Nitrogen Dioxide and Ozone in Two Northern European Capitals: Stockholm and Tallinn
- 2022
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Ingår i: Environments. - : MDPI. - 2076-3298. ; 9:7
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Although the association between air pollution and mortality is well established, less is known about the effects in different age groups. This study analyzes the short-term associations between mortality in different age groups (0–14 years of age, 15–64 years of age, and 65+ years of age) and a number of air pollutants in two relatively clean northern European capitals: Stockholm and Tallinn. The concentrations in PM10 (particles with an aerodynamic diameter smaller than or equal to 10 µm), PM2.5–10 (coarse particles), PM2.5 (particles with an aerodynamic diameter smaller than or equal to 2.5 µm), BC (black carbon), PNC4 (particle number count of particles larger than or equal to 4 nm), NO2 (nitrogen dioxide), and O3 (ozone) were measured during the period of 2000–2016 in Stockholm and 2001–2018 in Tallinn (except for BC and PNC4 which were only measured in Stockholm). The excess risks in daily mortality associated with an interquartile range (IQR) increase in the measured air pollutants were calculated in both single- and multi-pollutant models for lag01 and lag02 (average concentration during the same and the previous day, and the same and the previous two days, respectively) using a quasi-Poisson regression model with a logistic link function. In general, the calculated excess risks per IQR increase were highest in the age group 0–14 years of age in both Stockholm and Tallinn. However, in Stockholm, a statistically significant effect was shown for PM2.5–10, and in Tallinn for O3. In the oldest age group (65+), statistically significant effects were shown for both PM2.5–10, PM10, and O3 in Stockholm, and for O3 in Tallinn.
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| 6. |
- Olstrup, Henrik, et al.
(författare)
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Seasonal variations in the daily mortality associated with exposure to particles, nitrogen dioxide, and ozone in stockholm, sweden, from 2000 to 2016
- 2021
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Ingår i: Atmosphere. - : MDPI. - 2073-4433. ; 12:11
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Urban air pollutant emissions and concentrations vary throughout the year due to various factors, e.g., meteorological conditions and human activities. In this study, seasonal variations in daily mortality associated with increases in the concentrations of PM10 (particulate matter), PM2.5–10 (coarse particles), BC (black carbon), NO2 (nitrogen dioxide), and O3 (ozone) were calculated for Stockholm during the period from 2000 to 2016. The excess risks in daily mortality are presented in single and multi-pollutant models during the whole year and divided into four different seasons, i.e., winter (December–February), spring (March–May), summer (June–August), and autumn (September–November). The excess risks in the single-pollutant models associated with an interquartile range (IQR) increase for a lag 02 during the whole year were 0.8% (95% CI: 0.1–1.4) for PM10, 1.1% (95% CI: 0.4–1.8) for PM2.5–10, 0.5% (95% CI: −0.5–1.5) for BC, −1.5% (95% CI: −0.5–−2.5) for NO2, and 1.9% (95% CI: 1.0–2.9) for O3. When divided into different seasons, the excess risks for PM10 and PM2.5–10 showed a clear pattern, with the strongest associations during spring and autumn, but with weaker associations during summer and winter, indicating increased risks associated with road dust particles during these seasons. For BC, which represents combustion-generated particles, the pattern was not very clear, but the strongest positive excess risks were found during autumn. The excess risks for NO2 were negative during all seasons, and in several cases even statistically significantly negative, indicating that NO2 in itself was not harmful at the concentrations prevailing during the measurement period (mean values < 20 µg m−3). For O3, the excess risks were statistically significantly positive during “all year” in both the single and the multi-pollutant models. The excess risks for O3 in the single-pollutant models were also statistically significantly positive during all seasons.
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| 7. |
- Olstrup, Henrik, et al.
(författare)
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The Long-Term Mortality Effects Associated with Exposure to Particles and NOx in the Malmö Diet and Cancer Cohort
- 2023
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Ingår i: Toxics. - : MDPI. - 2305-6304. ; 11:11
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this study, the long-term mortality effects associated with exposure to PM10 (particles with an aerodynamic diameter smaller than or equal to 10 µm), PM2.5 (particles with an aerodynamic diameter smaller than or equal to 2.5 µm), BC (black carbon), and NOx (nitrogen oxides) were analyzed in a cohort in southern Sweden during the period from 1991 to 2016. Participants (those residing in Malmö, Sweden, born between 1923 and 1950) were randomly recruited from 1991 to 1996. At enrollment, 30,438 participants underwent a health screening, which consisted of questionnaires about lifestyle and diet, a clinical examination, and blood sampling. Mortality data were retrieved from the Swedish National Cause of Death Register. The modeled concentrations of PM10, PM2.5, BC, and NOx at the cohort participants’ home addresses were used to assess air pollution exposure. Cox proportional hazard models were used to estimate the associations between long-term exposure to PM10, PM2.5, BC, and NOx and the time until death among the participants during the period from 1991 to 2016. The hazard ratios (HRs) associated with an interquartile range (IQR) increase in each air pollutant were calculated based on the exposure lag windows of the same year (lag0), 1–5 years (lag1–5), and 6–10 years (lag6–10). Three models were used with varying adjustments for possible confounders including both single-pollutant estimates and two-pollutant estimates. With adjustments for all covariates, the HRs for PM10, PM2.5, BC, and NOx in the single-pollutant models at lag1–5 were 1.06 (95% CI: 1.02–1.11), 1.01 (95% CI: 0.95–1.08), 1.07 (95% CI: 1.04–1.11), and 1.11 (95% CI: 1.07–1.16) per IQR increase, respectively. The HRs, in most cases, decreased with the inclusion of a larger number of covariates in the models. The most robust associations were shown for NOx, with statistically significant positive HRs in all the models. An overall conclusion is that road traffic-related pollutants had a significant association with mortality in the cohort.
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| 8. |
- Olstrup, Henrik, et al.
(författare)
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The Use of Carbonaceous Particle Exposure Metrics in Health Impact Calculations
- 2016
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Ingår i: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. - : MDPI AG. - 1661-7827 .- 1660-4601. ; 13:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Combustion-related carbonaceous particles seem to be a better indicator of adverse health effects compared to PM2.5 and PM10. Historical studies are based on black smoke (BS), but more recent studies use absorbance (Abs), black carbon (BC) or elemental carbon (EC) as exposure indicators. To estimate health risks based on BS, we review the literature regarding the relationship between Abs, BS, BC and EC. We also discuss the uncertainties associated with the comparison of relative risks (RRs) based on these conversions. EC is reported to represent a proportion between 5.2% and 27% of BS with a mean value of 12%. Correlations of different metrics at one particular site are higher than when different sites are compared. Comparing all traffic, urban and rural sites, there is no systematic site dependence, indicating that other properties of the particles or errors affect the measurements and obscure the results. It is shown that the estimated daily mortality associated with short-term levels of EC is in the same range as PM10, but this is highly dependent on the EC to BS relationship that is used. RRs for all-cause mortality associated with short-term exposure to PM10 seem to be higher at sites with higher EC concentrations, but more data are needed to verify this.
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| 9. |
- Olstrup, Henrik, et al.
(författare)
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Trends in air pollutants and health impacts in three Swedish cities over the past three decades
- 2018
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Ingår i: Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. - : Copernicus GmbH. - 1680-7316 .- 1680-7324. ; 18:21, s. 15705-15723
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Air pollution concentrations have been decreasing in many cities in the developed countries. We have estimated time trends and health effects associated with exposure to NOx, NO2, O-3, and PM10 (particulate matter) in the Swedish cities Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmo from the 1990s to 2015. Trend analyses of concentrations have been performed by using the Mann-Kendall test and the Theil-Sen method. Measured concentrations are from central monitoring stations representing urban background levels, and they are assumed to indicate changes in long-term exposure to the population. However, corrections for population exposure have been performed for NOx, O-3, and PM10 in Stockholm, and for NOx in Gothenburg. For NOx and PM10, the concentrations at the central monitoring stations are shown to overestimate exposure when compared to dispersion model calculations of spatially resolved, population-weighted exposure concentrations, while the reverse applies to O-3. The trends are very different for the pollutants that are studied; NOx and NO2 have been decreasing in all cities, O-3 exhibits an increasing trend in all cities, and for PM10, there is a slowly decreasing trend in Stockholm, a slowly increasing trend in Gothenburg, and no significant trend in Malmo. Trends associated with NOx and NO2 are mainly attributed to local emis-sion reductions from traffic. Long-range transport and local emissions from road traffic (non-exhaust PM emissions) and residential wood combustion are the main sources of PM10. For O-3, the trends are affected by long-range transport, and there is a net removal of O-3 in the cities. The increasing trends are attributed to decreased net removal, as NOx emissions have been reduced. Health effects in terms of changes in life expectancy are calculated based on the trends in exposure to NOx, NO2, O-3, and PM10 and the relative risks associated with exposure to these pollutants. The decreased levels of NO x are estimated to increase the life expectancy by up to 11 months for Stockholm and 12 months for Gothenburg. This corresponds to up to one-fifth of the total increase in life expectancy (5470 months) in the cities during the period of 1990-2015. Since the increased concentrations in O-3 have a relatively small impact on the changes in life expectancy, the overall net effect is increased life expectancies in the cities that have been studied.
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| 10. |
- Olstrup, Henrik, et al.
(författare)
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Ventilation systems and their impact on nanoparticle concentrations in office buildings
- 2021
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Ingår i: Applied Sciences. - : MDPI. - 2076-3417. ; 11:19
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Nanoparticles (NPs) can infiltrate indoor environments and have a large impact on human health when inhaled. Thus, indoor air quality is highly dependent on the outdoor air and on the filters used in the ventilation systems. In the NanoOffice study, the concentrations and the size distribution of NPs were measured with a five-minute time resolution in twelve office buildings in Umeå. Measurements were taken with an SMPS 3938 during a one-week period in the heating and nonheating seasons. Large differences in ventilation between buildings appeared, despite the fact that similar MVHR ventilation systems were used, and most of them were equipped with F7 filters. The NP concentrations and the simultaneous ventilation flows were measured in buildings with a variable and a more constant ventilation flow. In some cases, an increase in NP concentration could be seen after ventilation turn-on or after an increase in the ventilation flow. There was also one case where the NP concentrations increased in connection with the ventilation being switched off or reducing its flow. However, variable NP concentrations were also shown in buildings with a fairly constant ventilation flow, which was prominent for the two buildings located closest to busy streets. The correlation coefficients between the ventilation flow and particles in different size classes were in general smallest for particles in the smallest size classes, indicating higher filtration efficiency.
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