Short-term increases in fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) during the summer and winter months in a mountain valley region of Utah were associated with increased health care visits for heart attack and unstable chest pain; however, the risk for each cardiac event differed by season, according to a preliminary study to be presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2023.
Short-term increases in fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) during the summer and winter months in a mountain valley region of Utah were associated with increased health care visits for heart attack and unstable chest pain; however, the risk for each cardiac event differed by season, according to a preliminary study to be presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2023. The meeting, to be held Nov. 11-13, in Philadelphia, is a premier global exchange of the latest scientific advancements, research and evidence-based clinical practice updates in cardiovascular science.
This study compared hospital visits for heart attack and unstable chest pain in a mountain valley of Utah during spikes in PM2.5 due to summertime wildfire smoke versus rising levels of PM2.5 during winter inversions — a weather phenomenon where a mix of cold and warm fronts trap air pollution from motor vehicles, factory emissions and other human sources.
“Summertime wildfire smoke does not cause the PM2.5 to rise as much as pollution from human sources during the winter inversions. However, the biological response to the particulate matter that is produced by wildfire smoke has been shown to be different from the response of PM2.5 produced by other sources, such as cars and businesses,” said lead study author Benjamin D. Horne, Ph.D., M.P.H., FAHA, director of cardiovascular and genetic epidemiology for Intermountain Health at the Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Read more at American Heart Association
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