Association Between of Ambient Air Pollution and Asthma Prevalencein Different Population Groups Residing in Eastern Texas

Abstract

Air pollution has been associated with the increase in asthma prevalence and a significant health impact in human populations. However, its specific effects on asthma prevalence in different age groups, genders and races are not well understood. Thus, the aim of the present study is to examine the associations between selected air pollutants (annual mean concentrations of PM2.5-particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter less than 2.5 micrometers, and surface ozone), and asthma prevalence in different population groups (based on age, gender, and race) residing in eastern part of Texas, USA, in 2010. County-wise asthma hospital discharge datafor different age groups, gender, and raceswere obtained from Texas Asthma Control Program, Office of Surveillance, Evaluation and Research, Texas Department of State Health Services,and environmental data for selected air pollutants were taken from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA)’s air quality system data mart program. Pearson correlation analyses were conducted to examine the relationships between annual mean concentrations ofpollutants and asthma rates for different age groups, genders, and races, using SPSS software version 21. The study results indicated significant variations in the correlation coefficients between asthma rate and air pollution exposure among different age groups, genders, and races in the residents of East-Texas, USA. Thus, steps should be taken to protect the most affected populations from further environmental exposure to air pollution, and to control, prevent or reduce the health impacts.