Search

Introduction: Studies on the associations between phthalate exposures and respiratory outcomes are limited. We investigated the association of phthalates exposure with pulmonary function and airway inflammation in asthmatic children., Methods: Fifty-six children with asthma living in Seoul Metropolitan Area, Korea aged 6-16 years were enrolled. Their pulmonary function including forced expiratory volume in 1 sec (FEV1) and peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) were measured, and the fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) as a marker of airway inflammation was examined repeatedly up to four times during the study period. Urinary levels of mono-(2-ethyl-5-hydroxyhexyl) phthalate (MEHHP) and mono-(2-ethyl-5-oxohexyl) phthalate (MEOHP), metabolites for di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), and mono-n-butyl phthalate (MnBP), a metabolite of di-n-butyl phthalate (DnBP), were also measured on the same days. The effects of phthalate metabolites on the respiratory symptoms were analyzed using linear mixed effect models with adjustment for potential cofounders., Results: An increase in phthalate metabolites was associated with a decrease in pulmonary function and an increase in FeNO in asthmatic children. As one natural log-unit (ln-unit) levels of urinary MEHHP and MEOHP increased, FeNO levels on the same day increased by 19.47 ppb [95% confidence interval (CI): 9.28, 29.67] and 17.93 ppb (95% CI: 5.86, 30.01), respectively. An increases in the urinary level of MEHHP, MEOHP, and MnBP by one ln-unit was associated with a decrease in PEFR on the next day by 12.17 L/min (95% CI: 2.59, 21.74), 10.80 L/min (95% CI: 0.29, 21.32), and 13.65 L/min (95% CI: 5.07, 22.24), respectively., Conclusion: Phthalates, especially DEHP, may worsen pulmonary function and airway inflammation in asthmatic children. To control asthma symptoms, exposure to phthalates needs to be avoided., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

We estimated the exposure to ambient air pollutants and analyzed the associations with allergic diseases. We enrolled 177 children with atopic dermatitis (AD) and 70 asthmatic adults living in Seoul Metropolitan Area, Korea, and followed for 17months between August 2013 and December 2014. Parents or patients recorded symptom scores on a daily basis. Exposure to particulate matter with a diameter <10μm (PM 10 ) and nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ) was estimated in four different ways in each individual, using the AQ1 (measurements from the nearest air quality monitoring station to residential houses), AQ2 (measurements modified from AQ1 with the indoor level of air pollutants and time activity of each individual), AQ1-DI, and AQ2-DI (measurements modified from AQ1 and AQ2, respectively, with daily inhalation intakes of air pollutants). A generalized linear mixed model (GLMM) was used to analyze the associations between exposure metrics and clinical symptoms after adjusting for ambient temperature and humidity, age, season, gender, and time trend. The exposure metrics for PM 10 and NO 2 showed different distributions. Symptoms of AD and asthma were positively associated with exposure to PM 10 , but not NO 2 , in all exposure metrics. The effect size of PM 10 exposure on asthma symptoms was slightly greater in metrics with inhalation capacity (AQ-DIs) than in those without (AQs). This pattern was not observed in AD. Exposure to PM 10 is associated with symptom aggravation in childhood AD and adult asthma. Different exposure estimates may be used to evaluate the impact of air pollution on different allergic diseases., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)