Impacts of air pollution on health: evidence from longitudinal cohort data of patients with cardiovascular diseases

Clifford Afoakwah (), Hong Son Nghiem, Paul Scuffham, Quan Huynh, Tom Marwick and Joshua Byrnes
Additional contact information
Clifford Afoakwah: Griffith University
Quan Huynh: The Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute
Tom Marwick: The Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute

The European Journal of Health Economics, 2020, vol. 21, issue 7, No 6, 1025-1038

Abstract: Abstract This study uses longitudinal cohort data to estimate the impacts of air pollution on health outcomes among people first hospitalised with heart diseases. Despite the generally low level of pollution in Australia, we find that acute exposure to pollution increases readmissions to hospitals within 3–12 months after discharge and is more evident among those suffering from heart failure. We further show that chronic exposure to air pollution increases the risk of death within 72 months, hospital admissions and general practitioner (GP) visits. Patients with coronary heart disease or cerebrovascular disease are the most affected groups. Finally, a cost saving of $1.3 billion will be generated to the health sector, if the monthly concentration of PM10 and CO was lowered to 15.49 µg/m3 and 122.99 µg/m3, respectively. The findings from our study emphasize the need for policies that target significant reduction in ambient PM10 and CO to decrease the demand for scarce healthcare resources for cardiac diseases.

Keywords: Air pollution; Cardiovascular disease; Health outcomes; Cost savings (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I10 I18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (8)

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DOI: 10.1007/s10198-020-01198-5

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