Effects of a Saharan Dust Episode on Emergency Attendances for Respiratory Diseases in İstanbul

Abstract

Saharan dust events have an important effect on the air quality of Turkey due to their significant contribution to particulate matter concentrations. These events likely impact public health in urban areas. However, there is no available information on the health effects of Saharan dust in Turkey. On Sunday 1 February 2015, İstanbul experienced an episode of extreme Sahara dust event, which increased the particulate matter concentrations greatly compared to the average values of the city. In this study, we examined the relationship between particulate matter (PM10, PM2.5) concentrations and emergency attendances for asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and acute bronchitis on the episode day to better understand the association between an extreme dust event and emergency attendances for respiratory health in the city. Analyses showed that there was no significant effect of the Saharan dust event on emergency attendances for asthma and COPD in İstanbul compared to average emergency attendance numbers of the city. However, emergency attendances for acute bronchitis significantly increased on the episode day. This study revealed, extreme Saharan dust events can considerably increase the risk of visiting hospital for acute bronchitis in İstanbul during a severe dust episode.