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Tuberculosis Diagnoses Following Wildfire Smoke Exposure in California



Details

  • Personal Author:
  • Description:
    Rationale: Wildfires are a significant cause of exposure to ambient air pollution in the United States and other settings. Although indoor air pollution is a known contributor to tuberculosis reactivation and progression, it is unclear whether ambient pollution exposures, including wildfire smoke, similarly increase risk. Objectives: To determine whether tuberculosis diagnosis was associated with recent exposure to acute outdoor air pollution events, including those caused by wildfire smoke. Methods: We conducted a case-crossover analysis of 6,238 patients aged ≥15 years diagnosed with active tuberculosis disease between 2014 and 2019 in 8 California counties. Using geocoded address data, we characterized individuals' daily exposure to <2.5 µm-diameter particulate matter (PM2.5) during counterfactual risk periods 3-6 months before tuberculosis diagnosis (hazard period) and the same time 1 year previously (control period). We compared the frequency of residential PM2.5 exposures exceeding 35 µg/m3 (PM2.5 events) overall and for wildfire-associated and nonwildfire events during individuals' hazard and control periods. Measurements and Main Results: In total, 3,139 patients experienced 1 or more PM2.5 events during the hazard period, including 671 experiencing 1 or more wildfire-associated events. Adjusted odds of tuberculosis diagnosis increased by 5% (95% confidence interval, 3-6%) with each PM2.5 event experienced over the 6-month observation period. Each wildfire-associated PM2.5 event was associated with 23% (19-28%) higher odds of tuberculosis diagnosis in this time window, whereas no association was apparent for nonwildfire-associated events. [Description provided by NIOSH]
  • Subjects:
  • Keywords:
  • ISSN:
    1073-449X
  • Document Type:
    Text
  • Funding:
    Grant
  • Genre:
    Journal Article
  • Place as Subject:
  • CIO:
    National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
  • Topic:
    Workplace Safety & Health
  • Location:
    North America
  • Pages in Document:
    10 pdf pages
  • Volume:
    207
  • Issue:
    3
  • NIOSHTIC Number:
    nn:20067168
  • Citation:
    Am J Respir Crit Care Med 2023 Feb; 207(3):336-345
  • Contact Point Address:
    Joseph A. Lewnard, School of Public Health and College of Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, 2121 Berkeley Way, Room 5410, Berkeley, CA 94720
  • Email:
    jlewnard@berkeley.edu
  • Federal Fiscal Year:
    2023
  • Performing Organization:
    University of California, Berkeley
  • Peer Reviewed:
    True
  • Start Date:
    20050701
  • Source Full Name:
    American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine
  • End Date:
    20250630
  • Collection(s):
  • Main Document Checksum:
    urn:sha-512:ec6ef26caf123f4a8d465c1608fe0a92218ee8d7ed869863f064c3761598294624e75c9f56121b123682b527e9e9267f7f70aa577f5e24fd51a14f3b0a806e2b
  • Download URL:
  • File Type:
    Filetype[PDF - 1.99 MB ]
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