Effects of PM2.5 Exposure in Different Air Quality Grades on Daily Outpatient Visits for Childhood Asthma in Shijiazhuang, China

Asthma is a common chronic inflammatory disorder that is more prevalent in children than in adults.China has seen an increasing prevalence of childhood asthma in recentdecades[1].Earlier studies have shown that air particulate matter (PM),particularly fine particulate matter(PM2.5)[2],is an important factor triggering childhood asthma. Since nationalPM2.5data were nota vailabl euntil 2013,

Assessment of Exposure to Polybrominated Dipheny Ethers via Inhalation and Diet in China

Objective This paper is to assess the current status of polybrominated diphenyl ethers（PBDEs） contamination in the environment in China and estimate the exposure to PBDEs in non-occupational populations.Methods A total of 80 research papers published from January 2001 to October 2013 were selected.Geographic information system（GIS） was used in mapping PBDE concentrations and distributions in environmental media.Ni＇s model was applied to calculate ∑PBDE-intake via the intakes of contaminated food,water and air in the Pearl River Delta and Yangtze River Delta.Results BDE-209 was found to be the major PBDE congener in the environmental media and food in China.PBDE concentrations varied among different areas,among which the contamination in Guangdong Province was most serious.Daily intake of ∑PBDEs was 225.1-446.0 ng/d for adults in the Pearl River Delta,which was higher than the intake for those living in the Yangtze River Delta（148.9-369.8 ng/d）.Conclusion PBDEs are ubiquitous in the environment of China.The estimated PBDEs daily dietary intake is comparable with that in European countries.

Air pollution and inhalation exposure to particulate matter of different sizes in rural households using improved stoves in central China

Household air pollution is considered to be among the top environmental risks in China.To examine the performance of improved stoves for reduction of indoor particulate matter（PM） emission and exposure in rural households, individual inhalation exposure to size-resolved PM was investigated using personal portable samplers carried by residents using wood gasifier stoves or improved coal stoves in a rural county in Central China.Concentrations of PM with different sizes in stationary indoor and outdoor air were also monitored at paired sites. The stationary concentrations of size-resolved PM in indoor air were greater than those in outdoor air, especially finer particles PM0.25. The daily averaged exposure concentrations of PM0.25, PM1.0, PM2.5 and total suspended particle for all the surveyed residents were 74.4 ± 41.1, 159.3 ± 74.3, 176.7 ± 78.1 and 217.9 ± 78.1 μg/m3,respectively. Even using the improved stoves, the individual exposure to indoor PM far exceeded the air quality guideline by WHO at 25 μg/m3. Submicron particles PM1.0 were the dominant PM fraction for personal exposure and indoor and outdoor air. Personal exposure exhibited a closer correlation with indoor PM concentrations than that for outdoor concentrations. Both inhalation exposure and indoor air PM concentrations in the rural households with gasifier firewood stoves were evidently lower than the reported results using traditional firewood stoves. However, local governments in the studied rural areas should exercise caution when widely and hastily promoting gasifier firewood stoves in place of improved coal stoves, due to the higher PM levels in indoor and outdoor air and personal inhaled exposure.