Short-term environmental nitrogen dioxide exposure and neurology clinic visits for headaches, a time-series study in Wuhan, China

Abstract

Background Previous studies showed the adverse impacts of air pollution on headache attacks in developed countries. However, evidence is limited to the impact of exposure to air pollutants on headache attacks. In this study, we aimed to explore the impact of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) exposure on neurology clinic visits (NCVs) for headache onsets. Methods Records of NCVs for headaches, concentrations of ambient NO2, and meteorological variables were collected in Wuhan, China, from January 1st, 2017, to November 30th, 2019. A time-series study was conducted to investigate the short-term effects of NO2 exposure on daily NCVs for headaches. Stratified analyses were also computed according to season, age, and sex, and the exposure–response (E-R) curve was then plotted. Results A total of 11,436 records of NCVs for headaches were enrolled in our study during the period. A 10-μg/m3 increase of ambient NO2 corresponded to a 3.64% elevation of daily NCVs for headaches (95%CI: 1.02%, 6.32%, P = 0.006). Moreover, females aged less than 50 years of age were more susceptible compared to males (4.10% vs. 2.97%, P = 0.007). The short-term effects of NO2 exposure on daily NCVs for headaches were stronger in cool seasons than in warm seasons (6.31% vs. 0.79%, P = 0.0009). Conclusion Our findings highlight that short-term exposure to ambient NO2 positively correlated with NCVs for headaches in Wuhan, China, and the adverse effects varied by season, age, and sex.

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“…Research result Zhang et al, 2022, Ambient air pollution is one of the factors that influences lung health, the effect of which is the incidence of coughing in adults. Research result Xu et al, 2023 in Wuhan China, demonstrated a 10-μg/m3 increase in NO2 in ambient air led to a 3.64% increase in neurology clinic visits for headaches (95% CI: 1.02%, 6.32%, P=0.006). This study concluded short-term exposure to ambient NO2 was positively correlated with NCV for headache.…”

“…If the air quality changes from normal conditions and disrupts the lives of humans, animals, and plants, the air will be polluted. Air pollution is a critical environmental problem, especially in developing countries (Hikmiyah, 2018;Xu et al, 2023). One technology that causes air pollution is motorized vehicles.…”