Combinations of epidemiological and experimental studies in air pollution research: A narrative review

• Authors: Hannah Weisenberg, Emory University; Tianyu Zhao, Klinikum der Universität München; Joachim Heinrich, Klinikum der Universität München
• Journal Title: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
• Volume: Volume 17, Number 2
• Publisher: MDPI | 2020-01-02
• Type of Work: Article | Final Publisher PDF
• Publisher DOI: http://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17020385
• Subjects: Environmental Sciences; Health Sciences, Epidemiology
• Keywords: air pollution; animal experimentation; epidemiological methods; human experimentation; particulate matter; Air Pollutants; Air Pollution; Beijing; Biomedical Research; Cardiovascular Diseases; Environmental Monitoring; Epidemiologic Studies; Humans; Particulate Matter

Abstract

Scientific literature is evolving to include more systematic reviews that encompass epidemiological and experimental papers so that the whole picture can be examined. The aim of this narrative review is to bridge that gap by combining epidemiological and experimental studies based on the same setting: Examples of Bitterfeld, Utah Valley, Beijing Olympic Games, and Viadana. This review looks at four examples that incorporate multiple epidemiological and experimental papers about air pollution exposure and health effects. The Bitterfeld (spatial) and Utah Valley (temporal) examples showed that particle composition causes the biggest difference in lung injury. In Beijing, a temporal difference of before/after and during the Olympics showed that traffic and industry air pollution-related health effects like lung cancer and cardiovascular disease could be reduced by improvement of air quality. The Viadana example showed a spatial difference in respiratory injury caused by particle composition and interactions with genotoxicity. Combining experimental and epidemiological methods gives a more in-depth look into the whole picture of exposure and health effects. Our review exemplifies the strength of this strategy and encourages further use of it.