CGPH AFFILIATED FACULTY: Michael Bates, John Balmes
DATE OF PUBLICATION: April 2013
REGION: Australia-Oceania (New Zealand)
REFERENCE: Bates MN, Garrett N, Crane J, Balmes JR. Associations of ambient hydrogen sulfide exposure with self-reported asthma and asthma symptoms. Environ Res. 2013 Apr;122:81-7. doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2013.02.002.
SUMMARY/ABSTRACT: Whether long-term, low-level hydrogen sulfide (H2S) gas is a cause of health effects, including asthma, is uncertain. Rotorua city, New Zealand, has the largest population exposed, from geothermal sources, to relatively high ambient levels of H2S. In a cross-sectional study, the authors investigated associations with asthma in this population. A total of 1637 adults, aged 18-65 years, were enrolled during 2008-2010. Residences and workplaces were geocoded. H2S exposures at homes and workplaces were estimated using city-wide networks of passive H2S samplers and kriging to create exposure surfaces. Exposure metrics were based on (1) time-weighted exposures at home and work; and (2) the maximum exposure (home or work). Exposure estimates were entered as quartiles into regression models, with covariate data.
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