Roy J. and Lucille K. Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, IA, USA.
Glob Public Health. 2013;8(7):822-30. doi: 10.1080/17441692.2013.815793. Epub 2013 Aug 1.
Indoor smoke exposure is responsible for two million deaths per year and has been studied globally, but the impacts of exposure have not yet been evaluated in Haiti, the Western hemisphere's poorest nation. This study measures the disproportionate impact of indoor smoke exposure on the women and children of Haiti. We studied 2296 clinic patients in four Haitian villages to determine the extent of carbon monoxide (CO) exposure, using carboxyhemoglobin saturation in the blood as a proxy for overall smoke exposure. We predicted CO levels to be higher in women, who traditionally perform the majority of cooking duties, and in children who accompany their mothers. CO levels averaged 4.9% in women and 3.4% in men. Women of child-bearing age carried a minimum relative risk (RR) for CO exposure of 1.22, relative to all males and younger females. Older females carried no significant difference in risk. Children averaged the lowest CO exposure among all cohorts. These findings demonstrate the burden of indoor smoke exposure that falls disproportionately on women in these regions of Haiti. Global efforts to mitigate indoor exposure have demonstrated the health, economic, environmental and social improvements that are possible by tackling this problem.
室内烟雾暴露每年导致 200 万人死亡，已在全球范围内进行了研究，但在西半球最贫穷的国家海地，暴露的影响尚未得到评估。本研究旨在衡量室内烟雾暴露对海地妇女和儿童的不成比例影响。我们研究了海地四个村庄的 2296 名诊所患者，通过血液中碳氧血红蛋白饱和度来衡量一氧化碳（CO）暴露程度，以此作为整体烟雾暴露的替代指标。我们预计，传统上承担大部分烹饪任务的妇女和陪同母亲的儿童的 CO 暴露程度会更高。女性的 CO 水平平均为 4.9%，男性为 3.4%。处于生育年龄的妇女的 CO 暴露最小相对风险（RR）为 1.22，与所有男性和年轻女性相比。年长女性的风险没有显著差异。儿童在所有队列中的 CO 暴露平均最低。这些发现表明，室内烟雾暴露的负担不成比例地落在海地这些地区的妇女身上。全球减轻室内暴露的努力表明，通过解决这个问题，可以实现健康、经济、环境和社会方面的改善。
