Large multi-center studies in the U.S. and Europe have recently reported that ozone is associated with daily deaths, especially in the summer. Since ozone air pollution peaks in the summer months, it is difficult to control for the effects of high temperature.
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A recent review of the effect of air pollution on allergies concludes that “the body of current scientific data now clearly delineates the role of pollutant-mediated adverse interactions in human allergic airway diseases. The allergist-clinical immunologist should be keenly aware that both gaseous and particulate outdoor pollutants might aggravate or enhance the underlying pathophysiology of both the upper and lower airways.”

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Short-term increases in ozone were found to increase total non-accidental mortality and deaths from cardiovascular and respiratory causes in a large 14-year study of residents of 95 U.S. cities.
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A panel study of 36 healthy children ages 6-13 has found that obese children receive higher doses of fine particles than thin children, due to the greater volume of air they inhale and exhale.
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Even low concentrations of PM air pollution may cause symptoms of respiratory distress in children with asthma, according to a new study in Spokane, Washington.
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Researchers followed a panel of 41 predominantly African-American children with moderate to severe asthma over 3 consecutive winters.
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Physicians in Santiago, Chile have reported that increased daily concentrations of PM2.5 are tied to an increased risk of wheezing bronchitis in babies.
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The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has published an important new policy statement that strengthens its stand on the dangers that air pollution poses to children, and offers new recommendations on how to help solve the problem.

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In a follow-up analysis to the American Cancer Society cohort study, researchers have reported a striking link between chronic exposure to fine particle air pollution and increased risk of death from cardiovascular disease in the United States.

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Many recent European studies have reported associations between respiratory symptoms and residential proximity of traffic. However, this is the first field study in the United States to evaluate relationships between measured concentrations of traffic-related pollutants and respiratory symptoms.

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