Characterizing the joint effects of pesticide exposure and criteria ambient air pollutants on pediatric asthma morbidity in an agricultural community.

BACKGROUND

Environmental contributions to pediatric asthma morbidity have been studied extensively in urban settings; exposures characteristic of agricultural and rural communities have received less attention despite a comparable burden of morbidity.

METHODS

We obtained repeated urine samples (n = 139) from 16 school-age children with asthma in the Yakima Valley of Washington State between July and October 2012. Biomarkers of organophosphate (OP) pesticide exposure (dialkyl phosphates [DAPs]) and asthma exacerbation (leukotriene E4 [LTE4]) were analyzed in samples. Corresponding 24-hour average particulate matter <2.5 μg (PM) and maximum 8-hour ozone concentration data for the study period were available from local monitoring stations. We evaluated the independent and multi-pollutant associations between LTE4 and exposure to ambient air pollutants and DAPs using generalized estimating equations. For multi-domain and multi-pollutant models, we created categorized pollution combination levels and estimated the relative health impact of exposure to pollutant mixtures.

RESULTS

In single-pollutant models, an interquartile range increase in exposures to DAPs was associated with increase in LTE4 levels (β: 4.1 [0.6-7.6] pg/mg). PM and ozone were also associated with increase in LTE4, though confidence intervals contained the null value. Increase in LTE4 levels was consistently associated with increase in median-dichotomized multi-pollutant combination exposures; the highest effect estimates were observed with joint highest (vs. the lowest) category of the three-pollutant exposure (PM, ozone, and OP; β: 53.5, 95% confidence interval = 24.2, 82.8 pg/mg).

CONCLUSION

Concurrent short-term exposure to criteria air pollutants and OPs in an agricultural community was associated with an increase in a marker of asthma morbidity.