Short-term effect of fine particular matter on daily hospitalizations for ischemic stroke: A time-series study in Yancheng, China

Objective To investigate the associations between short-term exposure to fine particular matter (PM2.5) and ischemic stroke (IS) in Yancheng, China, from 2017 to 2019. Methods We designed a time-series study based on generalized additive models to explore the association of PM2.5 and IS admitted in two major hospitals in Yancheng. We built different lag patterns and conducted stratification analyses by age, gender, and season. Moreover, we examined the robustness of the associations adopting two-pollutant models and fitted the concentration-response curves. Result We observed positive and significant associations at lag 0 day. Every 10 μg/m3 increase in PM2.5 (lag0) was associated with 1.06% (95% CI: 0.21%–1.91%) increases in hospitalizations for IS. The association remained stable and statistically significant to the adjustment of carbon monoxide and ozone. We observed that the associations were stronger in females and during cold seasons. The overall concentration-response relationship curve was linear positive and increased slowly but rose sharply at higher concentrations in the cold season. Conclusion Our study added to the evidence that short-term exposure to PM2.5 may induce IS, and the government should take action to address the air pollution issues and protect susceptible populations.