Evidence map›Paper›PMID 24706041›Full record

SynthesisThorax2014

Epidemiological time series studies of PM2.5 and daily mortality and hospital admissions: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

R W Atkinson, S Kang, H R Anderson, I C Mills, H A Walton

Abstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Thorax, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 353 papers, 18 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
353citing papers in PubMed, 18 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
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

353 citing papers in PubMed, 18 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Associations of exposure to PMBMC public health · 2025
    Pooled it
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  5. Challenges of Air Pollution and Health in East Asia.Current environmental health reports · 2024
    Pooled it
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  12. Acute Effects of Particulate Matter on All-Cause Mortality in Urban, Rural, and Suburban Areas, Italy.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021
    Pooled it
  13. Pooled it
  14. Short-term exposure to sulphur dioxide (SOEnvironment international · 2021
    Pooled it
  15. Pooled it
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  17. Fibrotic interstitial lung diseases and air pollution: a systematic literature review.European respiratory review : an official journal of the European Respiratory Society · 2020
    Pooled it
  18. A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Short-Term Ambient Ozone Exposure and COPD Hospitalizations.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2020
    Pooled it
  19. Review
  20. Article

293 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

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

5 authors.

R W AtkinsonPopulation Health Research Institute and MRC-PHE Centre for Environment and Health, St George's, University of London, London, UK.
S KangPopulation Health Research Institute and MRC-PHE Centre for Environment and Health, St George's, University of London, London, UK.
H R AndersonPopulation Health Research Institute and MRC-PHE Centre for Environment and Health, St George's, University of London, London, UK MRC-PHE Centre for Environment and Health, King's College London, London, UK.
I C MillsPublic Health England, Centre for Radiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards, Chilton, Oxfordshire, UK.
H A WaltonMRC-PHE Centre for Environment and Health, King's College London, London, UK NIHR Biomedical Research Centre at Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust and King's College London, London, UK.

Funding

Department of Health
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundShort-term exposure to outdoor fine particulate matter (particles with a median aerodynamic diameter <2.5 μm (PM2.5)) air pollution has been associated with adverse health effects. Existing literature reviews have been limited in size and scope.

methodsWe conducted a comprehensive, systematic review and meta-analysis of 110 peer-reviewed time series studies indexed in medical databases to May 2011 to assess the evidence for associations between PM2.5 and daily mortality and hospital admissions for a range of diseases and ages. We stratified our analyses by geographical region to determine the consistency of the evidence worldwide and investigated small study bias.

resultsBased upon 23 estimates for all-cause mortality, a 10 µg/m(3) increment in PM2.5 was associated with a 1.04% (95% CI 0.52% to 1.56%) increase in the risk of death. Worldwide, there was substantial regional variation (0.25% to 2.08%). Associations for respiratory causes of death were larger than for cardiovascular causes, 1.51% (1.01% to 2.01%) vs 0.84% (0.41% to 1.28%). Positive associations with mortality for most other causes of death and for cardiovascular and respiratory hospital admissions were also observed. We found evidence for small study bias in single-city mortality studies and in multicity studies of cardiovascular disease.

conclusionsThe consistency of the evidence for adverse health effects of short-term exposure to PM2.5 across a range of important health outcomes and diseases supports policy measures to control PM2.5 concentrations. However, reasons for heterogeneity in effect estimates in different regions of the world require further investigation. Small study bias should also be considered in assessing and quantifying health risks from PM2.5.

Indexed as

Air PollutantsCardiovascular DiseasesEnvironmental ExposureHospitalizationHumansLung DiseasesMortalityParticle SizeParticulate MatterAir PollutantsParticulate MatterAsthma EpidemiologyCOPD epidemiology

Identifiers

PMID24706041
PMCPMC4078677

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
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.