Respiratory risks from wildfire-specific PM2.5 across multiple countries and territories
Yiwen Zhang, Rongbin Xu, Wenzhong Huang, Tingting Ye, Pei Yu, Wenhua Yu, Yao Wu, Yanming Liu, Zhengyu Yang, Bo Wen, Ke Ju, Jiangning Song, Michael J. Abramson, Amanda Johnson, Anthony Capon, Bin Jalaludin, Donna Green, Eric Lavigne, Fay H. Johnston, Geoffrey Morgan, Luke D. Knibbs, Ying Zhang, Guy B. Marks, Jane Heyworth, Julie M. Arblaster, Yue Leon Guo, Lídia Morawska, Micheline de Sousa Zanotti Stagliorio Coêlho, Paulo Hilário Nascimento Saldiva, Patricia Matus Correa, Peng Bi, Simon Hales, Wenbiao Hu, Dung Phung, Yuming Guo, Shanshan Li
Abstract
Abstract Under a warming climate, wildfires are becoming more frequent and severe. Multicountry studies evaluating associations between wildfire fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) and respiratory hospitalizations are lacking. Here we evaluate the short-term effects of wildfire-specific PM 2.5 on respiratory hospitalizations from 1,052 communities across Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, New Zealand, Vietnam, Thailand and Taiwan, during 2000–2019. A 1 µg m −3 increase in wildfire-specific PM 2.5 was associated with increased hospitalization risks for all-cause respiratory, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, acute upper respiratory infection, influenza and pneumonia by 0.36%, 0.48%, 0.38%, 0.42%, 0.79% and 0.36%, respectively. Higher risks were observed among populations ≤19 or ≥60 years old, from low-income or high non-wildfire PM 2.5 communities, and residing in Brazil, Thailand, Taiwan and Vietnam. Australia and New Zealand exhibited a greater hospitalization risk for asthma associated with wildfire-specific PM 2.5 . Compared with non-wildfire PM 2.5 , wildfire-specific PM 2.5 posed greater hospitalization risks for all respiratory diseases and a greater burden of asthma. Wildfire-specific PM 2.5 contributed to 42.4% of PM 2.5 -linked respiratory hospitalizations, dominating in Thailand. Overall, the substantial contribution of wildfire-specific PM 2.5 to respiratory hospitalizations demands continued mitigation and adaptation efforts across most countries. Intervention should be prioritized for influenza, children, adolescents, the elderly and populations in low-income or high-polluted communities.