TY  - JOUR
AB  - PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is increasing worldwide with no known cure and an increasing number of triggers that exacerbate symptoms and speed up progression. This review aims to summarize the evidence for COPD patients being more vulnerable to air pollution exposure assessed as acute effects. RECENT FINDINGS: Several recent systematic reviews show consistently increased risks for COPD mortality and COPD hospital admission, ranging between 2 and 3% with increasing PMor PM. Similar adverse impacts were shown for NOAlsoadverse health effects among COPD patients were also found for other gaseous pollutants such as ozone and SO; most of these studies could not be included in the meta-analysis we reviewed. Data from ten panel studies of COPD patients reported a small but statistically significant decline of FEV1 [- 3.38 mL (95% CI - 6.39 to - 0.37)] per increment of 10 μg/m PM, supporting an impact on respiratory health with increasing PMexposure. The combined information from systematic reviews and more recent findings lead us to conclude that COPD patients are more vulnerable to ambient air pollution than healthier people.
AU  - Heinrich, J.
AU  - Schikowski, T.*
C1  - 53064
C2  - 44309
TI  - COPD patients as vulnerable subpopulation for exposure to ambient air pollution.
JO  - Curr. Environ. Health Rep.
PY  - 2018
SN  - 2196-5412
ER  - 

TY  - JOUR
AB  - PURPOSE OF THE REVIEW: The purpose of this review is to highlight the latest developments in the field of weather and health with a focus on the elderly. The current state of knowledge is summarized and open questions and emerging fields of research are discussed. RECENT FINDINGS: It is expected that climate change will lead to higher global average surface temperatures and more extreme climatic conditions. Previous studies have shown that non-optimal temperatures are associated with increased morbidity and mortality, specifically in elderly people. Future research fields comprise e.g., synergistic effects between meteorological variables and air pollution; long-term impacts of temperature changes; novel unraveling the underlying pathways using blood biomarkers; the association between temperature and mental health; and urban planning and adaptation processes. Understanding the health impacts associated with changes in thermal conditions requires multidisciplinary approaches. Adaptation processes, as well as improvements in urban planning and warning systems, can help reduce the predicted burden of climate change, especially in the elderly.
AU  - Schneider, A.E.
AU  - Rückerl, R.
AU  - Breitner-Busch, S.
AU  - Wolf, K.
AU  - Peters, A.
C1  - 50722
C2  - 42469
SP  - 21-29
TI  - Thermal control, weather, and aging.
JO  - Curr. Environ. Health Rep.
VL  - 4
IS  - 1
PY  - 2017
SN  - 2196-5412
ER  - 

TY  - JOUR
AB  - PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The purpose of this review is to describe the most recent statistical approaches to estimate the effect of multi-pollutant mixtures or multiple correlated exposures on human health. RECENT FINDINGS: The health effects of environmental chemicals or air pollutants have been widely described. Often, there exists a complex mixture of different substances, potentially highly correlated with each other and with other (environmental) stressors. Single-exposure approaches do not allow disentangling effects of individual factors and fail to detect potential interactions between exposures. In the last years, sophisticated methods have been developed to investigate the joint or independent health effects of multi-pollutant mixtures or multiple environmental exposures. A classification of the most recent methods is proposed. A non-technical description of each method is provided, together with epidemiological applications and operational details for implementation with standard software.
AU  - Stafoggia, M.*
AU  - Breitner-Busch, S.
AU  - Hampel, R.
AU  - Basagaña, X.*
C1  - 52074
C2  - 43703
SP  - 481-490
TI  - Statistical approaches to address multi-pollutant mixtures and multiple exposures: The State of the Science.
JO  - Curr. Environ. Health Rep.
VL  - 4
IS  - 4
PY  - 2017
SN  - 2196-5412
ER  -