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
. 2021 Jan 28;18(3):1131.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph18031131.

Sub-Clinical Effects of Outdoor Smoke in Affected Communities

Thomas O'Dwyer  1 , Michael J Abramson  1 , Lahn Straney  1 , Farhad Salimi  1 , Fay Johnston  2 , Amanda J Wheeler  2   3 , David O'Keeffe  1 , Anjali Haikerwal  1 , Fabienne Reisen  4 , Ingrid Hopper  1 , Martine Dennekamp  1   5
Affiliations

Sub-Clinical Effects of Outdoor Smoke in Affected Communities

Thomas O'Dwyer et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Many Australians are intermittently exposed to landscape fire smoke from wildfires or planned (prescribed) burns. This study aimed to investigate effects of outdoor smoke from planned burns, wildfires and a coal mine fire by assessing biomarkers of inflammation in an exposed and predominantly older population. Participants were recruited from three communities in south-eastern Australia. Concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) were continuously measured within these communities, with participants performing a range of health measures during and without a smoke event. Changes in biomarkers were examined in response to PM2.5 concentrations from outdoor smoke. Increased levels of FeNO (fractional exhaled nitric oxide) (β = 0.500 [95%CI 0.192 to 0.808] p < 0.001) at a 4 h lag were associated with a 10 µg/m3 increase in PM2.5 levels from outdoor smoke, with effects also shown for wildfire smoke at 4, 12, 24 and 48-h lag periods and coal mine fire smoke at a 4 h lag. Total white cell (β = -0.088 [-0.171 to -0.006] p = 0.036) and neutrophil counts (β = -0.077 [-0.144 to -0.010] p = 0.024) declined in response to a 10 µg/m3 increase in PM2.5. However, exposure to outdoor smoke resulting from wildfires, planned burns and a coal mine fire was not found to affect other blood biomarkers.

Keywords: FeNO; PM2.5; biomarkers; bushfire; landscape fire; neutrophils; smoke; white cell count.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

M.J.A. holds investigator-initiated grants from Pfizer and Boehringer-Ingelheim for unrelated research. He has undertaken an unrelated consultancy for, and received assistance with, conference attendance from Sanofi. He has received a speaker’s fee from GSK. The other authors declare no conflicts of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Study locations: Victoria, Australia.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Average 24 h concentrations of PM2.5 (µg/m3) measured in Warburton between 1 March and 30 April 2016. Health assessments were conducted on 1 April 2016 and 19–21 April 2016. Note that planned burns were conducted near Warburton during the study.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Boxplots showing median, quartiles and extreme concentrations of PM2.5 (µg/m3) as measured on the day’s health assessments were conducted in Warburton in 2014. Note that wildfires only occurred near Warburton during this study period.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Boxplots showing median, quartiles and extreme concentrations of PM2.5 (µg/m3) as measured on the day’s health assessments were conducted in Traralgon. Note that the coal mine fire only impacted Traralgon during the study.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Huang Y., Wu S., Kaplan J.O. Sensitivity of global wildfire occurrences to various factors in the context of global change. Atmos. Environ. 2015;121:86–92. doi: 10.1016/j.atmosenv.2015.06.002. - DOI
    1. Sharples J.J., Cary G.J., Fox-Hughes P., Mooney S., Evans J.P., Fletcher M.-S., Fromm M., Grierson P.F., McRae R., Baker P. Natural hazards in Australia: Extreme bushfire. Clim. Chang. 2016;139:85–99. doi: 10.1007/s10584-016-1811-1. - DOI
    1. Keywood M., Kanakidou M., Stohl A., Dentener F., Grassi G., Meyer C.P., Torseth K., Edwards D., Thompson A.M., Lohmann U., et al. Fire in the Air: Biomass Burning Impacts in a Changing Climate. Crit. Rev. Environ. Sci. Technol. 2011;43:40–83. doi: 10.1080/10643389.2011.604248. - DOI
    1. Keywood M., Cope M., Meyer C.M., Iinuma Y., Emmerson K. When smoke comes to town: The impact of biomass burning smoke on air quality. Atmos. Environ. 2015;121:13–21. doi: 10.1016/j.atmosenv.2015.03.050. - DOI
    1. Penman T.D., Christie F.J., Andersen A.N., Bradstock R.A., Cary G.J., Henderson M.K., Price O., Tran C., Wardle G.M., Williams R.J., et al. Prescribed burning: How can it work to conserve the things we value? Int. J. Wildland Fire. 2011;20:721–733. doi: 10.1071/WF09131. - DOI

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources