Environmental/Occupational News

ANAHEIM, Calif. —Patients with asthma used reliever inhalers more on days with unhealthy air quality during the Canadian wildfires, according to a poster at the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Annual Scientific Meeting.

Compared with army and air force veterans in the U.K. and Australia, naval veterans more frequently had lung cancers linked to asbestos exposure, according to results published in Scientific Reports.

The historical climate events of the past summer may have been eye-opening for all, but the health of patients with respiratory diseases and conditions has been particularly threatened due to these exposures.

Compared with fine particulate matter from any source, pollution from coal electricity-generating units heightened the risk for death by twofold among Medicare users, according to results published in Science.

Individuals aged 15 to 50 years faced heightened odds for COPD if they had been exposed to household air pollution and elevated ambient ozone levels, according to results published in Thorax.

Older Indigenous coal miners faced a higher likelihood for black lung disease and respiratory impairment than non-Indigenous miners, according to study results published in Annals of the American Thoracic Society.

Fine particulate matter from wildfires resulted in more cardiopulmonary ED visits among older adults, Native Americans and rural area residents, according to results published in American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

Residents in urban areas experienced reductions in lung function when exposed to increased levels of propylene oxide, according to study results published in CHEST.

HONOLULU — As global warming progresses, advocacy by clinicians who can speak about the health impacts of rising temperatures is crucial in evoking change, according to a presentation at the CHEST Annual Meeting.

HONOLULU — Use of short-acting beta agonists and steroids each raised the likelihood for gastroesophageal reflux disease among firefighters exposed to 9/11 particulate matter, according to a presentation at the CHEST Annual Meeting.