Evidence map›Paper›PMID 24466288›Full record

ArticlePloS one2014

Association between air pollution and general outpatient clinic consultations for upper respiratory tract infections in Hong Kong.

Wilson W S Tam, Tze Wai Wong, Lorna Ng, Samuel Y S Wong, Kenny K L Kung, Andromeda H S Wong

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in PloS one, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 21 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
21citing papers in PubMed
1.5field-weighted citation impact, top 20% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

21 citing papers in PubMed, 50 citations in OpenAlex.

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  15. Observational
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  19. Article
  20. Impact of Air Pollutants on Outpatient Visits for Acute Respiratory Outcomes.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2017
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.

Wilson W S TamJockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Sha Tin, Hong Kong ; Shenzhen Municipal Key Laboratory for Health Risk Analysis, Shenzhen Research Institute of The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China.
Tze Wai WongJockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Sha Tin, Hong Kong.
Lorna NgGeneral Outpatient Clinics, Kwong Wah Hospital, Yaumatei, Hong Kong.
Samuel Y S WongJockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Sha Tin, Hong Kong.
Kenny K L KungJockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Sha Tin, Hong Kong.
Andromeda H S WongJockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Sha Tin, Hong Kong.
Hong Kong Jockey Club · CNChinese University of Hong Kong · CNChinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen · CNKwong Wah Hospital · CN

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND

objectivesMany studies have shown the adverse effects of air pollution on respiratory health, but few have examined the effects of air pollution on service utilisation in the primary care setting. The aim of this study was to examine the association between air pollution and the daily number of consultations due to upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) in general outpatient clinics (GOPCs) in Hong Kong.

methodsDaily data on the numbers of consultations due to URTIs in GOPCs, the concentrations of major air pollutants, and the mean values of metrological variables were retrospectively collected over a 3-year period (2008-2010, inclusive). Generalised additive models were constructed to examine the association between air pollution and the daily number of consultations, and to derive the relative risks and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) of GOPC consultations for a unit increase in the concentrations of air pollutants.

resultsThe mean daily consultations due to URTIs in GOPCs ranged from 68.4 to 253.0 over the study period. The summary relative risks (and 95% CI) of daily consultations in all GOPCs for the air pollutants PM10, NO2, O3, and SO2 were 1.005 (1.002, 1.009), 1.010 (1.006, 1.013), 1.009 (1.006, 1.012), and 1.004 (1.000, 1.008) respectively, per 10 µg/m(3) increase in the concentration of each pollutant.

conclusionSignificant associations were found between the daily number of consultations due to URTIs in GOPCs and the concentrations of air pollutants, implying that air pollution incurs a substantial morbidity and increases the burden of primary health care services.

Indexed as

Air PollutantsAir PollutionAmbulatory Care FacilitiesEnvironmental ExposureFemaleHong KongHumansMaleMiddle AgedReferral and ConsultationRespiratory Tract InfectionsRetrospective StudiesRisk FactorsTime FactorsAir Pollutants

Identifiers

PMID24466288
PMCPMC3900683
OpenAlexW1985629997

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.