Residential greenness alleviated the adverse associations of long-term exposure to ambient PM1 with cardiac conduction abnormalities in rural adults

Bota Baheti; Gongbo Chen; Zhongao Ding; Ruiyu Wu; Caiyun Zhang; Lue Zhou; Xiaotian Liu; Xiaoqin Song; Chongjian Wang

doi:10.1016/j.envres.2023.116862

Residential greenness alleviated the adverse associations of long-term exposure to ambient PM₁ with cardiac conduction abnormalities in rural adults

Environ Res. 2023 Nov 15;237(Pt 1):116862. doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2023.116862. Epub 2023 Aug 12.

Authors

Bota Baheti¹, Gongbo Chen², Zhongao Ding¹, Ruiyu Wu¹, Caiyun Zhang¹, Lue Zhou³, Xiaotian Liu¹, Xiaoqin Song⁴, Chongjian Wang⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, College of Public Health, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan, PR China.
² Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.
³ NHC Key Laboratory of Prevention and Treatment of Cerebrovascular Diseases, Zhengzhou, Henan, PR China.
⁴ Physical Examination Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan, PR China. Electronic address: [email protected].
⁵ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, College of Public Health, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan, PR China; NHC Key Laboratory of Prevention and Treatment of Cerebrovascular Diseases, Zhengzhou, Henan, PR China. Electronic address: [email protected].

PMID: 37574100
DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2023.116862

Abstract

Background: Ambient air pollution was linked to elevated risks of adverse cardiovascular events, and alterations in electrophysiological properties of the heart might be potential pathways. However, there is still lacking research exploring the associations between PM₁ exposure and cardiac conduction parameters. Additionally, the interactive effects of PM₁ and residential greenness on cardiac conduction parameters in resource-limited areas remain unknown.

Methods: A total of 27483 individuals were enrolled from the Henan Rural Cohort study. Cardiac conduction parameters were tested by 12-lead electrocardiograms. Concentrations of PM₁ were evaluated by satellite-based spatiotemporal models. Levels of residential greenness were assessed using Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) and Normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI). Logistic regression models and restricted cubic splines were fitted to explore the associations of PM₁ and residential greenness exposure with cardiac conduction abnormalities risk, and the interaction plot method was performed to visualize their interaction effects.

Results: The 3-year median concentration of PM₁ was 56.47 (2.55) μg/m³, the adjusted odds rate (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for abnormal HR, PR, QRS, and QTc interval risk in response to 1 μg/m³ increase in PM₁ were 1.064 (1.044, 1.085), 1.037 (1.002, 1.074), 1.061 (1.044, 1.077) and 1.046 (1.028, 1.065), respectively. Participants exposure to higher levels of PM₁ had increased risks of abnormal HR (OR = 1.221, 95%CI: 1.144, 1.303), PR (OR = 1.061, 95%CI: 0.940, 1.196), QRS (OR = 1.225, 95%CI: 1.161, 1.294) and QTc interval (OR = 1.193, 95%CI: 1.121, 1.271) compared with lower levels of PM₁. Negative interactive effects of exposure to PM₁ and residential greenness on abnormal HR, QRS, and QTc intervals were observed (P_{for interaction} < 0.05).

Conclusion: Long-term PM₁ exposure was associated with elevated cardiac conduction abnormalities risks, and this adverse association might be mitigated by residential greenness to some extent. These findings emphasize that controlling PM₁ pollution and increasing greenness levels might be effective strategies to reduce cardiovascular disease burdens in resource-limited areas.

Keywords: Electrocardiogram parameters; Long-term; PM(1); Residential greenness; Rural adults.