D'Amato Gennaro
Division of Pneumology and Allergology Department of Respiratory Diseases, High Speciality Hospital "A, Cardarelli", Naples, Italy.
Multidiscip Respir Med. 2011 Feb 28;6(1):28-37. doi: 10.1186/2049-6958-6-1-28.
Over the past two decades there has been increasing interest in studies regarding effects on human health of climate changes and urban air pollution. Climate change induced by anthropogenic warming of the earth's atmosphere is a daunting problem and there are several observations about the role of urbanization, with its high levels of vehicle emissions and other pollutants, and westernized lifestyle with respect to the rising frequency of respiratory allergic diseases observed in most industrialized countries.There is also evidence that asthmatic subjects are at increased risk of developing exacerbations of bronchial obstruction with exposure to gaseous (ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide) and particulate inhalable components of air pollution.A change in the genetic predisposition is an unlikely cause of the increasing frequency in allergic diseases because genetic changes in a population require several generations. Consequently, environmental factors such as climate change and indoor and outdoor air pollution may contribute to explain the increasing frequency of respiratory allergy and asthma. Since concentrations of airborne allergens and air pollutants are frequently increased contemporaneously, an enhanced IgE-mediated response to aeroallergens and enhanced airway inflammation could account for the increasing frequency of allergic respiratory diseases and bronchial asthma.Scientific societies such as the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, European Respiratory Society and the World Allergy Organization have set up committees and task forces to produce documents to focalize attention on this topic, calling for prevention measures.
在过去二十年里，人们对气候变化和城市空气污染对人类健康影响的研究越来越感兴趣。由地球大气人为变暖引起的气候变化是一个令人生畏的问题，关于城市化（其高水平的车辆排放和其他污染物）以及西方化生活方式在大多数工业化国家观察到的呼吸道过敏性疾病发病率上升方面所起的作用，有若干观察结果。也有证据表明，哮喘患者在接触空气污染的气态（臭氧、二氧化氮、二氧化硫）和可吸入颗粒物成分时，发生支气管阻塞加重的风险增加。遗传易感性的改变不太可能是过敏性疾病发病率上升的原因，因为人群中的基因变化需要几代人的时间。因此，气候变化以及室内和室外空气污染等环境因素可能有助于解释呼吸道过敏和哮喘发病率的上升。由于空气中过敏原和空气污染物的浓度经常同时增加，对空气过敏原的IgE介导反应增强和气道炎症加剧可能是过敏性呼吸道疾病和支气管哮喘发病率上升的原因。欧洲变态反应与临床免疫学会、欧洲呼吸学会和世界变态反应组织等科学团体已成立委员会和特别工作组，以编写文件，集中关注这一主题，并呼吁采取预防措施。
