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Unlabelled: The association between short term changes in ambient air concentrations of TSP and SO2 and day to day fluctuations in mortality was analyzed in the highly polluted Northern Bohemia region inhabited by approximately 630,000 people. A logistic regression model was adjusted for long term trends, seasonal cycles, influenza epidemics and weather parameters. The pollution and mortality data were available from 1982 to 1994. When the association was evaluated regardless of gender and age, 100 micrograms/m3 increase of TSP, but not SO2, was associated with a 3.4% increase of daily mortality lagged by 2 days. Evident differences in this association have been found between men and women. A significant increase in daily total and CVD mortality was observed in men below 65 while in women of the same age we found no association or even significant decrease in daily mortality. For the population over 65 the differences between genders were again apparent. The mortality in women increased significantly while in men significant decrease was demonstrated., Conclusions: The evaluation with respect to gender might contribute to identifying susceptible subgroups.

Background: Several studies have demonstrated that the increase of air pollutants is related to the increase of the diurnal mortality. The aim of the work was to find correlation among the diurnal mortality and changes in the concentration of SO2, total suspended particles (TSP), and dust particles with aerodynamic diameter smaller than 10 microns (PM10) and smaller than 2.5 microns (PM2.5) in the external air of the North Bohemian brown-coal basin., Methods and Results: All that died in 1982-1994 in coal-basin districts of the North Bohemia region were included into the data set. Method of long time series and the model of logistic regression were applied with correction to long-term trends, seasons, respiratory diseases and meteorological condition. Investigating the described relation regardless to age and sex, the increase of TSP by 100 micrograms/m3 was connected with significant increase of the total diurnal mortality by 3.4%. Significant differences between males and females were found. Meanwhile the mortality of males younger than 65 years increased, that of equally old females decreased. Contrary to it, in population of females older than 65 mortality increased and that males significantly decreased., Conclusion: Monitoring of the diurnal mortality and air pollution in relation to the sex reveals important for the identification of sensitive and vulnerable population subgroups. Illogic and difficult to explain is the decrease of mortality in conditions of increased air pollutants. Authors recommend repeating the analysis also in different epidemiological studies in order to distinguish whether the presented results are accidental or have a more general significance.