Eur Respir J 2006; 27:542-546
Copyright ©ERS Journals Ltd 2006
Wood smoke exposure and risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
M. Orozco-Levi1,
J. Garcia-Aymerich2,
J. Villar3,
A. Ramírez-Sarmiento1,
J. M. Antó2 and
J. Gea1
1 Muscle and Respiratory Research Unit (URMAR), Municipal Institute of Medical Research (IMIM), Servei de Pneumologia, Hospital del Mar, CEXS-Universitat Pompeu Fabra, 2 Respiratory and Environmental Health Research Unit, Institut Municipal d'Investigació Mèdica (IMIM), and 3 Servei de Medicina Interna, Hospital del Mar, Barcelona, Spain.
CORRESPONDENCE: M. Orozco-Levi, Servei de Pneumologia, Hospital del Mar, Passeig Maritim 25, Barcelona, E-08003, Spain. Fax: 34 932213237. E-mail: morozco{at}imim.es
Keywords: Biomass, charcoal, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, risk, smoke, wood
Received: May 3, 2005
Accepted November 22, 2005
It was hypothesised that wood smoke exposure could be a risk factor for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Spain. The present study was designed as a casecontrol study of 120 females requiring hospitalisation during 20012003 at Hospital del Mar (Barcelona, Spain).
Cases were recruited from hospital records as females who had been admitted for an exacerbation of COPD. Controls were obtained from pulmonary function test laboratory consultations prior to a surgical intervention. All patients answered a standardised questionnaire.
Exposure to wood or charcoal smoke was strongly associated with COPD after adjusting for age and smoking. The association between length of exposure and COPD suggested a doseresponse pattern. Intensity of exposure in both summer and winter was also related to COPD. Wood or charcoal alone independently increased risk of COPD (odds ratio (OR) 1.8 and 1.5, respectively), but only the combination of both was statistically significant (OR 4.5).
In conclusion, the present study shows a strong association between wood or charcoal smoke exposure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, supporting its existence not only in developing countries, but also in European countries, such as Spain. Further studies assessing whether this association also exists in other European societies are warranted.
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Copyright © 2006 by the European Respiratory Society.
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