A Longitudinal Cohort Study on the Association between Long-Term Exposure to Ambient Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) and Diabetes Development

摘要

A longitudinal cohort study on the association between long-term exposure to ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and diabetes development Xiang Qian Lao 1, *, Cui Guo 1; Yacong Bo 1; Zilong Zhang 11. School of Public Health and Primary Care, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Background There is limited information on the effects of long-term exposure to PM2.5 on the development of diabetes, especially in the WHO Western Pacific and South-East Asia regions, where many countries are experiencing high levels of air pollution. This study aimed to investigate the association between PM2.5 and incident diabetes using a large-scale longitudinal cohort study in Taiwan. Method We recruited around 150,000 participants at least 18 years of age between 2001 and 2014. Each participant received at least two measurements of fasting plasma glucose (FPG). Incident diabetes was identified as FPG>126 mg/dl, or self-reported physician-diagnosed diabetes. We estimated PM2.5 concentrations at each participant's address using a satellite-based spatiotemporal model with a resolution of 1 × 1 km2. We performed Cox regression models with time-dependent covariates to analyse the effects of long-term to PM2.5 on the incidence of diabetes. Results Every 5-μg/m3 increase in PM2.5 was associated with a 5% higher risk of diabetes (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.05; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.03 to 1.07). Compared with the participants who exposed to the 1st quartile of PM2.5, participants with the exposure to the 2nd, 3rd and 4th quartiles of PM2.5 had HRs of 1.26 (95% CI: 1.17 to 1.37), 1.27 (95% CI: 1.17 to 1.37) and 1.15 (95% CI: 1.06 to 1.25), respectively, in the incidence of diabetes. Participants who drank occasionally or regularly (more than once per week) and had a lower body mass index (<23 kg/m2) were more sensitive to the effects of long-term exposure to ambient PM2.5. Conclusion Long-term exposure to ambient PM2.5 is associated with an increased risk of diabetes development.