In June 2019 researchers from the USA published the results of their study to assess the association between asthma and exposure to air pollution in high asthma and low asthma areas and also to determine factors that influence asthma during a child’s first year of life, first 2 years, first 5 years, and during their childhood. Information was collected on each child’s exposure to both on-road and individual fine particulate matter (PM2.5) emissions. Results of a comparison between areas with a high and low incidence of asthma showed there was an increased risk of asthma when the child was living within a 2.5 km radius from on-road emission sources and within a 400m radius from individual PM2.5 sources. Children also appeared to have more hospital visits for their asthma in the first 5 years of life than at other times of their childhood.
Oyana TJ et al. Effects of childhood exposure to PM2.5 in a Memphis pediatric asthma cohort. Environ Monit Assess. 2019 Jun 28;191(Suppl 2):330.