The health impact of Saharan dust exposure

Abstract

Air pollution is a high priority global health concern. The health damaging effects of ambient particulate matter (PM), a component of air pollution, are extensively documented, with 1.4% of deaths worldwide resulting from exposure to PM. A growing body of evidence suggests that mineral dust, found in PM, may contribute to some of these deleterious health impacts. Approximately half of atmospheric mineral dust originates from the Sahara Desert. This systematic but concise review summarizes the findings from recent literature exploring the adverse health effects of Saharan dust particles worldwide. The authors have shown that 1) PM contributes to all-cause and cause-specific mortality and morbidity; 2) the PM arising from Saharan dust contributes to excess all-cause and cause-specific mortality and morbidity; and 3) larger particle sizes may be more harmful than smaller particle sizes. However, there remain many questions regarding their effects on vulnerable patient populations, underlying mechanisms of action, and regional variations in both environmental and health effects. This review highlights the urgent need for continued and deeper analyses of this emerging public health issue.

Association between African Dust Transport and Acute Exacerbations of COPD in Miami

“…Moreover, dust is also associated with the risk of other diseases, including pulmonary infectious [ 51 , 52 ] and cardiovascular diseases [ 53 ]. PM has been shown to directly contribute to all-cause and cause-specific mortality as well [ 54 ]. For example, a study in Barcelona showed that a daily increase of 10 μg/m 3 in PM 10–2.5 from Saharan dust was associated with an 8.4% increase in mortality [ 55 ].…”

Impact of Desert Dust Events on the Cardiovascular Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…Exposure to such PM plays a key role in cardiovascular disorders attributed to air pollution [2]. The World Health Organization (Geneva, Switzerland) recommends that the population should not be exposed to concentrations of breathable PM with an aerodynamic diameter <10µm, i.e., PM10, of over 50µg/m 3 .…”

“…At present, part of the scientific community is investigating the health consequences of the inhalation of airborne desert dust as a component of PM10 breathable particles, which affects over 2000 million people [3]. The main dust-emitting regions are found in the so-called Dust Belt, which extends through North Africa, the Middle East, and Inner Asia (Figure 1) [4].…”

“…However, the available evidence is not fully conclusive. Whereas some studies have reported a small yet significant influence, others have found no impact [3,[10][11][12]. The statistical power of time series studies that analyze the influence of dust on health is a very common and underestimated problem.…”

8. Experimental Study of the Impact of Air Purifiers on the Indoor Air Quality Inside of an Apartment

“…The PM deriving from Saharian dust are responsible to multiple causes of mortality and morbidity. The impact of dust is appearing and sufficiently powerful, therefore it requires further study [9]. As found from these previous papers, the use of air purifier to reduce PM levels, seems an appealing solution.…”