Air Quality, Patterns and Otolaryngology Health Effects of Air Pollutants in Beijing in 2013

We carried out a time-series analysis on daily/hourly ambient air pollutant concentrations and daily number of outpatient consultations for otolaryngology during the first year (2013) of implementation of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards in Beijing. Daily patterns of SO2, NO2, CO, O-3, PM10 and PM2.5 were determined and hourly characteristics of air pollutants from Dongsi are discussed. Health effects of air pollutants on ear, nose and throat (ENT) were evaluated. The results show that daily air pollutant concentrations had obvious seasonal differences. O-3 levels in the warm season were higher than in the cold season, whereas other pollutants showed opposite trends. All pollutants had different seasonal patterns for hourly concentrations. Hours with peak concentrations also had seasonal differences, and hourly time trends of PM2.5 and PM10 (particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameters less than 2.5 mu m and 10 mu m, respectively) were different. In contrast with other air pollutants, hourly O-3 concentrations in warm season were higher than cold season. Dongcheng District had high PM10 and PM2.5 levels and Beijing experienced heavy PM2.5 pollution in 2013. Ozone became the second main air pollutant in Beijing. All pollutants had health effects on ENT, and lag effects were found for some pollutants. Relative risks in the warm season were higher than in the cold season for O-3 and lower than the cold season for the other five air pollutants.