OBJECTIVES—To answer the question whether living near opencast coal mining sites affects acute and chronic respiratory health. METHODS—All 4860 children aged 1-11 from five socioeconomically matched pairs of communities close to active opencast sites and control sites away from them were selected. Exposure was assessed by concentrations of particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter <10 µm (PM10), residential proximity to active opencast sites, and particle composition. PM10 was monitored and sampled for 6 weeks in four pairs, and for 24 weeks in one pair. A postal questionnaire collected data on health and lifestyle. Daily health information was collected by a symptom diary (concurrently with PM10 monitoring) and general practitioner (GP) records were abstracted (concurrently with PM10 monitoring and 52 weeks before the study). Outcomes were the cumulative and period prevalence (2 and 12 months) of wheeze, asthma, bronchitis, and other respiratory symptoms, and the prevalence and incidence of daily symptoms and GP consultations. RESULTS—Patterns of the daily variation of PM10 were similar in opencast and control communities, but PM10 was higher in opencast areas (mean ratio 1.14, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.13to 1.16, geometric mean 17.0 µg/m3 v 14.9 µg/m3). Opencast sites were a measurable contributor to PM10 in adjacent areas. Little evidence was found for associations between living near an opencast site and an increased prevalence of respiratory illnesses, asthma severity, or daily diary symptoms, but children in opencast communities 1-4 had significantly more respiratory consultations (1.5 v 1.1 per person-year) than children in control communities for the 6 week study periods. Associations between daily PM10 concentrations and acute health events were similar in opencast and control communities. CONCLUSIONS—Children in opencast communities were exposed to a small but significant amount of additional PM10 to which the opencast sites were a measurable contributor. Past and present respiratory health of children was similar, but GP consultations for respiratory conditions were higher in opencast communities during the core study period.
机译：目的—回答居住在露天煤矿附近的居民是否会影响急性和慢性呼吸健康的问题。 方法—来自五个经济社会对的所有1860岁的1-11岁儿童均来自活跃的露天场所和控制场所附近他们被选中。通过空气动力学直径<10 µm（PM10）的颗粒物浓度，居住在活动露天场所附近的颗粒物和颗粒组成来评估暴露。对PM10进行监测并四对采样6周，一对进行24周采样。邮政调查表收集了有关健康和生活方式的数据。通过症状日记收集日常健康信息（同时进行PM10监测），并提取全科医生（GP）记录（同时进行PM10监测和研究前52周）。结果是喘息，哮喘，支气管炎和其他呼吸道症状的累积和患病率（2和12个月），以及日常症状和GP咨询的患病率和发生率。 结果-PM10每日变化的模式在露天和控制社区中相似，但露天区域的PM10更高（平均比1.14,95％置信区间（95％CI）1.13 至1.16，几何平均值17.0μg/ m 3 v 14.9 µg / m 3 ）。露天站点对邻近地区的PM10做出了可衡量的贡献。鲜有证据表明居住在露天场所附近与呼吸系统疾病，哮喘严重程度或每日日记症状的患病率增加之间存在关联，但露天社区1-4中的儿童进行的呼吸咨询次数明显更多（每人每年1.5 v 1.1）在为期6周的学习期间内，控制社区中的儿童人数要比儿童少。在露天社区和对照社区中，每日PM10浓度与急性健康事件之间的关联相似。 结论—露天社区的儿童暴露于少量但大量的PM10中，露天站点是可衡量的贡献者。儿童的过去和现在的呼吸健康状况相似，但在核心研究期间，露天社区的GP呼吸状况咨询更高。
