Risk assessment to health of schoolchildren on exposure to ozone and fine particulate matter from biomass burning in the city of Rio Branco - AC

摘要

Introduction: Ozone (O3) and fine particulate matter (PM2,5) are the pollutants with the greatest impact on public health. About 0.7 million deaths from respiratory diseases and 3.5 million deaths from cardiopulmonary diseases occur worldwide each year due to exposure to O3 and PM2,5, respectively, arising from anthropogenic activities.Objective: Risk assessment of exposure to O3 and PM2,5 in schoolchildren aged 6 to 14 years, from the estimate of potential dose ingress in Rio Branco, Acre, 2009. Method: The Risk Assessment methodology was applied to assess the risk of exposure to O3 and PM2,5, from biomass burning in children living in Rio Branco, in the months from August to October 2009, which corresponds to the period of drought. The estimate of ingress potential dose for pollutants O3 and PM2,5 was performed by Monte Carlo simulation according to age, sex, asthma and body mass index. The toxicologic risk was estimated by ratio between of the potential dose and reference dose for each pollutant studied. Results: The highest concentrations of 03 and PM2,5 in 2009 reached 119.4 μg/m3 and 51.1 μg/m3, respectively. The schoolchildren have incorporated doses averages potential for exposure to O3 of 2.83 μg/kg.dia (CI 95%: 2.72 - 2.94) and for PM2,5 of 0.93 μg/kg.dia (CI 95%: 0.86 - 0.99). To exposure to O3 toxicologic risk was greater than 1 for all children (QR = 2.75; CI 95%: 2.64 - 2.86). Conclusion: Children living in Rio Branco, a city located in the Brazilian Amazon were exposed to high doses of O3 pollution in the dry period in the region, presenting toxicological risk to the pollutant. To exposure to PM2,5 schoolchildren showed no toxicological risk.