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Environmental Health > Air Quality > Flashcards

Air Quality Flashcards

1
Q

What is WHO?

A

World Health Organization

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2
Q

What is the composition of air (by weight)?

A

1) Nitrogen
2) Oxygen
3) Argon
4) Carbon Dioxide
5) Other gases / in lesser amounts
5) Water vapor

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3
Q

What year was the historical air pollution of Meuse Valley in Belgium and what happened?

A

1930, industrial valley where pollutants were trapped under a dense god cloud.

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4
Q

What year was the historical air pollution of Donora, Pennsylvania and what happened?

A

1948, 20 died & 6,000 sick.

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5
Q

What year was the historical air pollution of London, England and what happened?

A

1952, 12,000 people died. Caused by the condensation of water on sulfur dioxide.

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6
Q

Name the 7 Natural Sources of Air Pollution;

A

1) Windstorms (dust spread)
2) Salt evaporation along the coasts
3) Production of materials that have biologic origin.
4) Forest fires
5) Methane gas originated from the digestion of food (by animals)
6) Radon gas
7) Volcanic eruptions

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7
Q

Anthropogenic Sources of Air Pollution: Stationary Sources (6)

A
  • Electric generating plants
  • Factories & manufacturing complexes
  • Oil refineries
  • Chemical plants
  • Incinerators
  • Landfills
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8
Q

Anthropogenic Sources of Air pollution: Mobile Sources (3)

A
  • On-road vehicles [cars, trucks]
  • Off-road vehicles [dune buggies, snowmobiles]
  • Non-road vehicles [planes, ships]
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9
Q

Mobile Sources & Air Pollution :
According to the EPA, motor vehicles produce nearly half of the two major causes of smog?
True or false?

A

True.
Makes up almost 75% of carbon monoxide, & more than half of emissions of toxic air pollutants.

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10
Q

What are Primary Pollutants?

A

Released from a process directly in the atmosphere.
NOTE * Sulfur oxide (SO), Nitrogen oxide (NO), Carbon monoxide (CO), lead, volatiles, organic compounds (VOCs), & other metals & minerals.

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11
Q

What are Secondary Pollutants?

A

Formed from the reaction or interaction of primary pollutants in the atmosphere.
NOTE * PM 2.5, PM 10, Ozone

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12
Q

What are some environmental impacts of air pollution?

A

Morbidity
Death
Property damage
Reduced visibility
Harm to forest, bodies of water, wildlife

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13
Q

What are Criteria Pollutants?

A

A group of very common air pollutants that are regulated by the EPA on the basis of health & environmental impact

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14
Q

Ozone (O3)

A

Three oxygen atoms bonded together into a molecule.

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15
Q

Ozone characteristic & effects on the body;

A

Sharp smell [stems from a series of chemical reactions among products of combusting fossil fuels].
- irritation & inflammation of the respiratory tract
- lung function
- exasperation of allergies
- irritation of eyes

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16
Q

Nitrogen oxides (NOx) & effects on the body;

A

Result from the combustion of gasoline / coal.
[Gases made up of a single molecule of nitrogen combined with one to two molecules of oxygen]
- affects lungs & respiratory system
MAIN COMPONENT OF ACID RAIN

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17
Q

Particulate Matte (PM)
COARSE PARTICLES (10-2.5)*

A

Because of their size these particles can reach the upper respiratory tract, causing inflammation & irritation.

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18
Q

FINE PARTICLES (<2.5 - >0.1)

A

Able to be inhaled into the lungs, translocating into the blood.
- ** Are NOT cleared readily from the body
- Associate with 60,000 deaths annually (in the US)

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19
Q

ULTRA FINE PARTICLES (ufp) or NANO SIZE PARTICLES (<0.1)

A

After reaching the alveoli, translocate into the blood and cause systemic effects.
- inflammation
- oxygen radical species (ORS)
- Arterial stiffness & remodeling

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20
Q

Particulate Matter : Composition

A

(1) Metal particles re-entrain from soil to air.
(2) Their characterization is important in order to understand the association between metal pollutions & disease.
(3) Trace of metals are also present in fossil fuels (coal/gasoline/diesel)
(4) Metal & metal salts including beryllium, nickel, chromium, cobalt, iron, & aluminum in PM have been reported as possible causes of asthma.

21
Q

Temperature Inversion

A

Atmospheric condition during which a warm layer of air stalls above a layer of cool air that is closer to the surface of the earth. [ During this, pollutants can easily build up and be trapped closer to the earths surface].

22
Q

What is the Air Quality Index used for?

A

The Air Quality Index is used to provide the public with an indication of air quality on a daily basis / in the local area.

23
Q

What does the Air Quality Index focus on?

A

The health effects that an individual may experience within a few hours or days after breathing polluted air.

24
Q

What is NAAQS?

A

National Ambient Air Quality Standards

25
Q

Primary Standards of NAAQS

A

Sets limits to protect public health, including the health of sensitive/vulnerable populations [asthmatics/children/elderly].

26
Q

Secondary Standards of NAAQS

A

Sets limits to protect public health, including protection against decreased visibility, damage to animals, crops, vegetation, & buildings.

27
Q

How often does the EPA review scientific literature?

A

Every 5 years ~ at what point they decide whether to revise.

28
Q

Health Impact of Air Pollution: Those at risk (6)

A
  • Preexisting CV & lung disease
  • cigarette smoke, vaping, motor vehicle traffic
  • Motor vehicle exhaust associated with angina pectoris
  • increased level of CO & myocardial infraction
  • low-income/heavy traffic, associated with asthma
  • high ambient level of PM2.5, associated with increased emergency room visits (asthma attacks)
29
Q

Air Pollution effects on the Respiratory System, symptoms (3)

A
  • Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
  • Asthma trigger &/or exacerbation
  • Lung cancer
30
Q

COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease)

A

Characterized by the gradual loss of lung function.
In the US COPD includes;
1) Chronic Bronchitis
2) Chronic Obstructive Bronchitis
3) Emphysema
4) Combination of these conditions

31
Q

COPD Risk Factors in US (4)

A

(1) Cigarette, pipe, cigar, tobacco smoking
(2) Second-hand smoke
(3) Occupational dusts & chemicals
(4) Outdoor air pollution : adds to the number of inhaled particles.
it’s role in COPD is being studied

32
Q

Asthma

A

Asthma is a chronic disorder of the airways.
Airway in the lungs become constricted & inflamed.

33
Q

What is asthma characterized by?

A

Reversible airway obstruction & nonspecific bronchial hyper responsiveness

34
Q

Symptoms of Asthma (4)

A

1) Wheezing
2) Breathlessness
3) Chest tightness
4) Coughing (night & early morning)

35
Q

Asthma Epidemiology

A
  • 1.8 million emergency room visits / year
  • 500,00 hospitalized / year for asthma
  • morbidity & mortality rates are increasing
  • > 5,000 deaths / year from asthma
36
Q

Risk Factors : Asthma (2)

A

1) Genetic characteristics
2) Environmental exposures that can lead to a person to develop asthma.

Environmental exposures that have an impact; 4 TIMES MORE LIKELY TO SUFFER FROM ASTHMA (than those a couple of miles away)
- residents of places located near border areas
- heavy traffic

37
Q

Asthma Genetic Characteristics

A
  • Children with asthmatic parent(s) are more likely to have it themselves.
  • Some individuals have a genetic predisposition to react to certain allergens
  • Susceptibility for developing atopic disease appears to have family associations & genetic components
38
Q

Social, Economical, and Cultural Factors : Asthma

A

Asthma is a complex disease that is a result from the interaction of host, environmental, & socioeconomic factors.

  • Disparity is seen in asthma prevalence & severity in correlation with socioeconomic or ethnic groups
  • Poverty, lack of health care access, exposure related to lifestyle, geographic location, overcrowded neighborhoods, heavy traffic, & other variables.
  • Economic, environmental, & cultural factors may play a role in the resulting disparities between high-income & low-income & minority children.
39
Q

Cardiovascular Disease

A

Individuals with preexisting metabolic, heart, or lung disease are highly susceptible to detrimental effects of air pollutants.
*- Arrhythmias & hypertension may trigger angina, heart attack, or stroke.

40
Q

Air Pollution & Cardiovascular Disease

A

Morbidity:
- Inflammatory effect of PM is even stronger for individuals with diabetes, obesity, & hypertension.

  • Positive association between PM & blood
    pressure, which is even stronger in the
    presence of roadway traffic
  • Link with motor vehicle exhaust &
    angina pectoris as well as CO & acute
    myocardial infraction
41
Q

Chronic Exposure to Air Pollutants & Cardiovascular Disease : Mechanism of Damage of Particulate Matter (PM)

A

(1) PM inhalation causes lung inflammation, generating
inflammatory molecules (cytokines), which leak into
circulation
(2) PM translocate into general circulation generating
oxygen radicals, lipid oxidation, deposit of oxidated lipids
in arterial wall (atherogenesis), vascular disfunction &
systemic inflammation

42
Q

Cardiovascular Disease: Acute Exposure to Air Pollutants

A

Objective: To investigate the adverse respiratory and cardiologic effects of exposure to roadway emissions in healthy young, non-obese Hispanic young adults

43
Q

Lung Cancer

A

For every 10 µg of PM 2.5 µm (fine
particulate matter) increases 8% of
deaths from lung Ca
* Even short-term increases of air
pollutants is associated with heart
attacks, mainly in smokers &
secondhand smoke.

44
Q

Reproductive System

A

Traffic pollution is associated with damage
sperm & reduction of fertility in men;

  • Sperm volume, count, hormone levels were
    not different between the study groups
  • Sperm is less efficient in reach &
    penetrated the egg
  • The only difference was higher blood
    levels of air pollutants (So2, No2, Pb) in
    men exposed to traffic pollutant
    compared with the non-exposed group.
  • Wives of men heavily exposed to traffic air
    pollutants become pregnant in nearly double.
    Average time of those whose husbands were not exposed.
  • Seasonal air pollution affects young men sperm in terms of its motility, morphology (head shape)
45
Q

Birth Outcome; risk for low birth weight may increase with..

A

(1) CO exposure during moths 2-5

(2) Particulate matter <10 µm in
months 2-4 –SO2,

(3) NO2 exposure during months
3-5

46
Q

PM Translocation into the Brain

A

PM (Soluble & poorly soluble) travel from
olfactory mucosa to the olfactory bulb of
the brain via olfactory nerve axons

  • Another possible translocation route is from mother to fetus via placenta.
  • Immature fetal hematoencephalic brain
    barrier leaks some pollutants into brain
  • Heath impact:
    – Decreased cognitive function across verbal
    & nonverbal intelligence, & memory
47
Q

Urban Traffic & Neurobehavioral Health

A

Evidences showed urban air pollution is toxic for CNS by activation of ORS & inflammation
* poorer memory span length & deficits in working memory
* Behavioral problems including attention problems & delinquent or aggressive behavior
Methods:
* Ecuadorian children aged 8-14 years living in low-income neighborhoods
* Exposure level was classified based on their residential proximity to nearest heavy traffic road as:
High<100 m; Intermediate 100-190 m; Low > 200m

Behavioral
assessment:
* Child behavioral checklist (CBCL./6-18) which collects data from mothers on reported child psychosocial dysfunction.
* Behavioral assessment & research system (BARS) computer based tests:
1) Attention
2) Response speed & coordination
3) Visual memory
4) processing speed
5) working memory

48
Q

Results

A

Children living within100 m from heavy traffic roads:
Higher score across all CBCL subscales-Match to sample longer latencies, which indicate
poor visual memory-Continuous performance, indicating poorer sustained attention.

Environmental Health (1 decks)

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