Association between Exposure to Ambient Air Pollution and the Risk of Rheumatoid Arthritis in Taiwan: A Population-Based Retrospective Cohort Study

Wen-Chao Ho, Li-Wei Chou, Ruey-Yun Wang, Thanh-Nhan Doan, Hwa-Lung Yu, Ting-Hsuan Chou, Kang-Yung Liu, Po-Chang Wu and Shwn-Huey Shieh
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Wen-Chao Ho: Department of Public Health, College of Public Health, China Medical University, Taichung 406040, Taiwan
Li-Wei Chou: Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung 404332, Taiwan
Ruey-Yun Wang: Department of Public Health, College of Public Health, China Medical University, Taichung 406040, Taiwan
Thanh-Nhan Doan: Department of Public Health, College of Public Health, China Medical University, Taichung 406040, Taiwan
Hwa-Lung Yu: Department of Bioenvironmental Systems Engineering, National Taiwan University, Taipei 10617, Taiwan
Ting-Hsuan Chou: Department of Public Health, College of Public Health, China Medical University, Taichung 406040, Taiwan
Kang-Yung Liu: Department of Public Health, College of Public Health, China Medical University, Taichung 406040, Taiwan
Po-Chang Wu: Ph.D. Program in Translational Medicine, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung 40227, Taiwan
Shwn-Huey Shieh: Department of Health Services Administration, College of Public Health, China Medical University, Taichung 406040, Taiwan

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 12, 1-10

Abstract: Background: The association between ambient air pollution (AAP) and the risk of Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) remains debatable. We conducted a population-based cohort study to investigate the association between exposure to AAP and the risk of RA in Taiwan. Methods: We analyzed and combined the longitudinal Health Insurance Database (LHID) and the Taiwan Air Quality-Monitoring Database (TAQMD), which were in line with the residential areas. We calculated the RA incidence rates per 10,000 person-years exposed to each quartile of PM2.5 or PM10 concentrations or RH. Hazards regression was conducted to analyze the associations between exposure to each quartile of PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations and the risk of developing RA. The hazard ratios of RA were analyzed between participants exposed to annual average concentrations of PM2.5 and PM10. All the hazard ratios of RA were stratified by gender and adjusted for age and relative humidity (RH). A p -value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Among 722,885 subjects, 9338 RA cases were observed. The analyses adjusted for age, gender, and humidity suggested an increased risk of developing RA in the exposure to PM2.5 in the last quartile (Q4) with the adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) was 1.053 (95%CI: 1.043 to 1.063). Conclusion: Our study suggests that exposure to PM2.5 is associated with an increased risk of RA. The finding has implications for policymaking to develop coping strategies to confront AAP as a risk factor for RA.

Keywords: rheumatoid arthritis; air pollution; PM2.5; PM10 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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