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Objectives: This study aims to estimate the short-term preventable mortality and associated economic costs of complying with the World Health Organization (WHO) air quality guidelines (AQGs) limit values for PM 10 and PM 2.5 in nine major Latin American cities., Methods: We estimated city-specific PM-mortality associations using time-series regression models and calculated the attributable mortality fraction. Next, we used the value of statistical life to calculate the economic benefits of complying with the WHO AQGs limit values., Results: In most cities, PM concentrations exceeded the WHO AQGs limit values more than 90% of the days. PM 10 was found to be associated with an average excess mortality of 1.88% with concentrations above WHO AQGs limit values, while for PM 2.5 it was 1.05%. The associated annual economic costs varied widely, between US$ 19.5 million to 3,386.9 million for PM 10 , and US$ 196.3 million to 2,209.6 million for PM 2.5 ., Conclusion: Our findings suggest that there is an urgent need for policymakers to develop interventions to achieve sustainable air quality improvements in Latin America. Complying with the WHO AQGs limit values for PM 10 and PM 2.5 in Latin American cities would substantially benefits for urban populations., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they do not have any conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Madaniyazi, Alpízar, Cifuentes, Riojas-Rodríguez, Hurtado Díaz, de Sousa Zanotti Stagliorio Coelho, Abrutzky, Osorio, Carrasco Escobar, Valdés Ortega, Colistro, Roye and Tobías.)

Background: Collective risk factors such as climate and pollution impact on the risk of acute cardiovascular events, including ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). There is limited data however on the precise temporal and independent association between these factors and STEMI, and the potentially interacting role of government policies against Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), especially for Latin America., Methods: We retrospectively collected aggregate data on daily STEMI admissions at 10 tertiary care centers in the Buenos Aires metropolitan area, Argentina, from January 1, 2017 to November 30, 2020. Daily measurements for temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind direction, wind speed, and rainfall, as well as carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide, and particulate matter <10 µm (PM10), were retrieved. Exploratory analyses focused on key COVID-19-related periods (e.g. first case, first lockdown), and Stringency Index quantifying the intensity of government policy response against COVID-19., Results: A total of 1498 STEMI occurred over 1430 days, for an average of 0.12 STEMI per center (decreasing from 0.130 in 2018 to 0.102 in 2020, P=0.016). Time series analysis showed that lower temperature and higher concentration of CO and PM10 were all significantly associated with an increased rate of STEMI (all P<0.05), whereas COVID-19 outbreak, lockdown, and stringency of government policies were all inversely associated with STEMI (all P<0.05). Notably, environmental features impacted as early as 28 days before the event (all P<0.05), even if same or prior day associations proved stronger (all P<0.05). Multivariable analysis suggested that maximum temperature (P=0.001) and PM10 (P=0.033) were the strongest predictor of STEMI, even after accounting for COVID-19-related countermeasures (P=0.043)., Conclusions: Lower temperature and higher concentrations of CO and PM10 are associated with significant increases in the rate of STEMI in a large Latin American metropolitan area. The reduction in STEMI cases seen during the COVID-19 pandemic is at least in part mediated by improvements in pollution, especially reductions in PM10.

Objective: to evaluate the impact of air pollution and weather changes on the number of visits to a pediatric emergency department in Buenos Aires, Argentina., Materials and Methods: we designed an ecological time-series study using generalized additive models (GAM) for the period 2012-2014. The outcome variable was the number of daily visits to a pediatric emergency department taking into account daily consultations. The potential predictors were the average daily air pollution levels (carbon monoxide -CO-, nitrogen dioxide -NO2-, particulate matter 10 microns or less in diameter -PM10-) and weather variables (temperature, humidity, wind speed and direction, and rainfall) and we controlled by weekday and long-time trend., Results: the number of visits during the winter months (286 daily) was significantly higher than those in the other seasons (p <0.0001). The change in air pollution levels did not show a significant and consistent correlation with the visits. Temperature, relative humidity, rainfall, and wind speed and direction were not significant variables for any of the examined lags., Conclusions: Considering the population and variables of our study, air pollution does not affect the health outcomes, as does seasonal epidemics. Studies that examine other health variables are necessary to establish the impact of air pollution on children’s health in Buenos Aires.

Based on the theoretical framework of environmental risk, this article discusses the management of air quality in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires in relation to current and potential impacts of toxic gases and global climate change on the health of the population. Information on historical and current management of the air was linked to the results of the South American Emissions, Megacities and Climate research project to assess danger, exposure, vulnerability and uncertainty as the dimensions of risk. By contextualizing public policies developed in recent decades on this subject, it was possible to identify emerging configurations of risk and uncertainties as accelerators of social vulnerability. On the one hand, the fact that there is a positive correlation between mortality, changes in temperature and air pollution was confirmed. On the other hand, it became clear that there is a disconnect between air quality management and health care management, while limitations were found in the proposed mitigation measures relating to emissions of greenhouse gases produced by fuel, revealing uncertainties regarding their efficacy.