Environmental Pollution by Benzene and PM 10 and Clinical Manifestations of Systemic Sclerosis: A Correlation Study

Alice Borghini, Andrea Poscia, Silvia Bosello, Adele Anna Teleman, Mario Bocci, Lanfranco Iodice, Gianfranco Ferraccioli, Daniele Ignazio La Milìa and Umberto Moscato
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Alice Borghini: Institute of Public Health-Hygiene Section, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Roma, Italy
Andrea Poscia: Institute of Public Health-Hygiene Section, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Roma, Italy
Silvia Bosello: Department of Rheumatology, Fondazione Policlinico Gemelli, 00168 Rome, Italy
Adele Anna Teleman: Institute of Public Health-Hygiene Section, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Roma, Italy
Mario Bocci: Department of Rheumatology, Fondazione Policlinico Gemelli, 00168 Rome, Italy
Lanfranco Iodice: Vice Medical Director, San Raffaele Cassino Hospital, 03043 Cassino (FR), Italy
Gianfranco Ferraccioli: Department of Rheumatology, Fondazione Policlinico Gemelli, 00168 Rome, Italy
Daniele Ignazio La Milìa: Institute of Public Health-Hygiene Section, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Roma, Italy
Umberto Moscato: Institute of Public Health-Hygiene Section, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Roma, Italy

IJERPH, 2017, vol. 14, issue 11, 1-8

Abstract: Atmospheric air pollution has been associated with a range of adverse health effects. The environment plays a causative role in the development of Systemic Sclerosis (SSc). The aim of the present study is to explore the association between particulate (PM 10 ) and benzene (B) exposure in Italian patients with systemic sclerosis and their clinical characteristics of the disease. A correlation study was conducted by enrolling 88 patients who suffer from SSc at the Fondazione Policlinico “A. Gemelli” in Rome (Italy) in the period from January 2013 to January 2014. The average mean concentrations of B (in 11 monitoring sites) and PM 10 (in 14 sites) were calculated using data from the Regional Environmental Protection Agency’s monitoring stations located throughout the Lazio region (Italy) and then correlated with the clinical characteristics of the SSc patients. Of the study sample, 92.5% were female. The mean age was 55 ± 12.9 years old and the mean disease duration from the onset of Raynaud’s phenomenon was 13.0 ± 9.4 years. The Spearman’s correlation showed that concentrations of B correlate directly with the skin score (R = 0.3; p ≤ 0.05) and inversely with Diffusing Lung Carbon Monoxide (DLCO) results (R = −0.36; p = 0.04). This study suggests a possible role of B in the development of diffuse skin disease and in a worse progression of the lung manifestations of SSc.

Keywords: systemic sclerosis; benzene; particulate matter (PM 10 ); environmental exposure (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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