Incidence of Respiratory Symptoms for Residents Living Near a Petrochemical Industrial Complex: A Meta-Analysis

Wen-Wen Chang, Hathaichon Boonhat and Ro-Ting Lin
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Wen-Wen Chang: Department of Occupational Safety and Health, College of Public Health, China Medical University, Taichung 40402, Taiwan
Hathaichon Boonhat: Graduate Institute of Public Health, College of Public Health, China Medical University, Taichung 40402, Taiwan
Ro-Ting Lin: Department of Occupational Safety and Health, College of Public Health, China Medical University, Taichung 40402, Taiwan

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 7, 1-16

Abstract: The air pollution emitted by petrochemical industrial complexes (PICs) may affect the respiratory health of surrounding residents. Previous meta-analyses have indicated a higher risk of lung cancer mortality and incidence among residents near a PIC. Therefore, in this study, a meta-analysis was conducted to estimate the degree to which PIC exposure increases the risk of the development of nonmalignant respiratory symptoms among residents. We followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines to systematically identify, select, and critically appraise relevant research. Finally, we identified 16 study groups reporting 5 types of respiratory symptoms: asthma, bronchitis, cough, rhinitis, and wheezing. We estimated pooled odds ratios (ORs) using random-effect models and investigated the robustness of pooled estimates in subgroup analyses by location, observation period, and age group. We determined that residential exposure to a PIC was significantly associated with a higher incidence of cough (OR = 1.35), wheezing (OR = 1.28), bronchitis (OR = 1.26), rhinitis (OR = 1.17), and asthma (OR = 1.15), although the latter two associations did not reach statistical significance. Subgroup analyses suggested that the association remained robust across different groups for cough and bronchitis. We identified high heterogeneity for asthma, rhinitis, and wheezing, which could be due to higher ORs in South America. Our meta-analysis indicates that residential exposure to a PIC is associated with an increased risk of nonmalignant respiratory symptoms.

Keywords: respiratory symptoms; petrochemical industrial complexes; air pollution; residential exposure; meta-analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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