Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2016 Jul 11;13(7):694.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph13070694.

Health Impact Assessment of Air Pollution in São Paulo, Brazil

Affiliations

Health Impact Assessment of Air Pollution in São Paulo, Brazil

Karina Camasmie Abe et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Epidemiological research suggests that air pollution may cause chronic diseases, as well as exacerbation of related pathologies such as cardiovascular and respiratory morbidity and mortality. This study evaluates air pollution scenarios considering a Health Impact Assessment approach in São Paulo, Brazil. We have analyzed abatement scenarios of Particulate Matter (PM) with an aerodynamic diameter <10 μm (PM10), <2.5 μm (PM2.5) and ozone concentrations and the health effects on respiratory and cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in the period from 2009 to 2011 through the APHEKOM tool, as well as the associated health costs. Considering World Health Organization (WHO) standards of PM2.5 (10 μg/m³), São Paulo would avoid more than 5012 premature deaths (equivalent to 266,486 life years' gain) and save US$15.1 billion annually. If São Paulo could even diminish the mean of PM2.5 by 5 μg/m³, nearly 1724 deaths would be avoided, resulting in a gain of US$ 4.96 billion annually. Reduced levels of PM10, PM2.5 and ozone could save lives and an impressive amount of money in a country where economic resources are scarce. Moreover, the reduced levels of air pollution would also lower the demand for hospital care, since hospitalizations would diminish. In this sense, Brazil should urgently adopt WHO air pollution standards in order to improve the quality of life of its population.

Keywords: Brazil; Health Impact Assessment; air pollution; air quality; economic costs; health management; ozone; particulate matter; public health.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Sanchez-Guerra M., Zheng Y., Osorio-Yanez C., Zhong J., Chervona Y., Wang S., Chang D., McCracken J.P., Díaz A., Bertazzi P.A., et al. Effects of particulate matter exposure on blood 5-hydroxymethylation: Results from the Beijing truck driver air pollution study. Epigenetics. 2015;10:633–642. doi: 10.1080/15592294.2015.1050174. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Wang C., Tu Y., Yu Z., Lu R. PM2.5 and cardiovascular diseases in the elderly: An overview. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health. 2015;12:8187–8197. doi: 10.3390/ijerph120708187. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bilenko N., Brunekreef B., Beelen R., Eeftens M., de Hoogh K., Hoek G., Koppelman G.H., Wang M., van Rossem L., Gehring U. Associations between particulate matter composition and childhood blood pressure—The PIAMA study. Environ. Int. 2015;84:1–6. doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2015.07.010. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Pope C.A., Burnett R.T., Thurston G.D., Thun M.J., Calle E.E., Krewski D., Godleski J.J. Cardiovascular mortality and long-term exposure to particulate air pollution: Epidemiological evidence of general pathophysiological pathways of disease. Circulation. 2004;109:71–77. doi: 10.1161/01.CIR.0000108927.80044.7F. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Franklin B.A., Brook R., Arden Pope C. Air pollution and cardiovascular disease. Curr. Probl. Cardiol. 2015;40:207–238. doi: 10.1016/j.cpcardiol.2015.01.003. - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources