Contents:
- Medical Video: Air Pollution Levels Linked to Stroke-Related Narrowing of Arteries
- Effect of pollution on stroke
- How long does it take for pollution to cause a stroke?
- What types of strokes are related to air pollution?
Medical Video: Air Pollution Levels Linked to Stroke-Related Narrowing of Arteries
We constantly interact with the environment around us. What happens in our body is inseparable from the events in the environment because we constantly breathe air, including material that is in it. Air pollution and contamination are well known for their impact on our respiratory health.
And interestingly, the air particles we breathe also show a contribution in the risk of stroke.
Effect of pollution on stroke
Air pollution is different in every part of the world, both in the level of contamination and the type of pollutants. Researchers from various regions around the world have examined the impact of pollution on strokes.
The scientific article recently published in the September 2014 issue of the Sao Paulo Medical Journal reports that the relationship between stroke and air pollution in Sao Paolo, Brazil, is a city that is considered to have a low level of air pollution. The results show that exposure to certain particles and sulfur dioxide air pollutants increases the risk of stroke death by 7% -10%. A similar investigation was carried out in Taipei, Taiwan determined that a high level of particle exposure was associated with an increase in the number of hospitalized patients for hemorrhagic strokes.
A number of research analyzes from cities, populations and different environments show the same findings.
Exposure to air pollution results in small to moderate increases in stroke incidents. Only one analysis failed to show a direct association between exposure to airborne particles and strokes, but found an association between certain airborne particles with atrial fibrillation and cardiac arrhythmias, both of which are known as risk factors for stroke.
How long does it take for pollution to cause a stroke?
Other studies in Brazil specifically identified the same day when exposure to certain particles, sulfur dioxide and ozone exposure as a risk for the treatment of hospitalizations due to stroke. The meta-analysis examining a total of 34 separate studies related to this subject, published in August 2014 in the International Journal of Cardiology, confirmed this finding related to the short-term relationship between exposure to air pollution and the occurrence of strokes. The meta-analysis also noted that pollution has a short-term effect on stroke risk, which might indicate that air pollution does not cause a buildup of stroke risk and this risk may not last long after exposure to air pollutants decreases.
What types of strokes are related to air pollution?
An analysis conducted in London looked for differences in certain types of strokes associated with exposure to high levels of nitric oxide and certain particles. The study determined that patients tend to have strokes, but these strokes tend to be mild to moderate, not severe strokes.
