Abstract

Methods

We conducted multi-site case-crossover analyses of all-cause deaths and of hospitalizations for diabetes or neurological disorders among Medicare enrollees (>65 years) during the period 1999 to 2010 in 121 US communities. We examined whether 1) short-term exposure to PM_2.5 increases the risk of hospitalization for diabetes or neurological disorders, and 2) the association between short-term exposure to PM_2.5 and all-cause mortality is modified by having a previous hospitalization of diabetes or neurological disorders.

Results

We found that short term exposure to PM_2.5 is significantly associated with an increase in hospitalization risks for diabetes (1.14% increase, 95% CI: 0.56, 1.73 for a 10 μg/m³ increase in the 2 days average), and for Parkinson’s disease (3.23%, 1.08, 5.43); we also found an increase in all-cause mortality risks (0.64%, 95% CI: 0.42, 0.85), but we didn’t find that hospitalization for diabetes and neurodegenerative diseases modifies the association between short term exposure to PM_2.5 and all-cause mortality.

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