Lorenz, C;
Libonati, R;
Belém, LBC;
Oliveira, A;
Chiaravalloti, RM;
Nunes, AV;
Batista, EKL;
... Roque, FO; + view all
(2023)
Wildfire and smoke association with COVID-19 cases in the Pantanal wetland, Brazil.
Public Health
, 225
pp. 311-319.
10.1016/j.puhe.2023.10.032.
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Abstract
OBJECTIVE: In 2020, Brazil experienced two concurrent public health challenges related to respiratory disease: wildfires and increased mortality due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Smoke from these wildfires contributed to a variety of air pollutants, including fine particulate matter (PM2.5). The present study aims to investigate the effects of environmental and socio-economic factors on COVID-19 hospitalisation in the Pantanal. STUDY DESIGN: Ecological retrospective study. METHODS: We applied a multilevel negative binomial model to relate monthly hospitalisation data with environmental variables. RESULTS: We showed that monthly PM2.5 concentration levels had the greatest influence on the increase in hospitalisations by COVID-19 in the elderly (23 % increase). The Gini index, a coefficient that reflects income inequalities, also had a positive association with COVID-19 hospitalisations (18 % increase). Higher temperatures and humidity were protective factors, showing a 15 % and 14 % decrease in hospitalisations, respectively. The results of the present study suggest that high PM2.5 exposure contributed to the increase in COVID-19 hospitalisations, as did the social inequalities of each municipality. CONCLUSIONS: The present study highlights the importance of gathering evidence supported by multiple information sources to guide decision-making and identify populations needing better public health systems.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Wildfire and smoke association with COVID-19 cases in the Pantanal wetland, Brazil |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.puhe.2023.10.032 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.puhe.2023.10.032 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher's terms and conditions. |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Dept of Anthropology |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10182158 |
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