Air Quality Guidelines Global Update 2005 - World Health ...

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AIR QUALITY GUIDELINES
Table 5. Summary of relative risk estimates for health outcomes used in 2002
estimates of burden of disease
Health outcome
ALRI
COPD
Lung cancer (coal use only)
Source: Smith et al. (9).
Age and sex group
Children 30 years
Men >30 years
Women >30 years
Men >30 years
No. of studies
by studies on outdoor air pollution and ETS, indicates that there is likely to be
a strong association between indoor smoke exposure and ALRI in children,
COPD among women and lung cancer (where coal is used). The evidence for
other health outcomes needs to be further evaluated through studies with more
rigorous exposure assessment and control of confounding. Tables 4 and 5 show
relative risk estimates for health outcomes that are associated with exposure to
smoke from solid fuel (9).
For computing disease burdens associated with solid fuel use, estimates of
relative risk obtained from epidemiological studies have been combined in metaanalyses
for the three disease end-points for which there is strong evidence of an
association with use of solid fuels, namely ALRI in children aged