[New methods for evaluation of the effects of urban pollutants]

Air pollution represents a health risk for inhabitants of cities and workers operating in urban environment. Short-term effects of pollutants are mainly observed in individuals with preexisting pulmonary and cardiovascular diseases. The present paper reviews the methods for studying short-term effects of pollutants on respiratory tract. The design of such studies is problematic since pollution is present indoor and outdoor making it difficult the examination of non-exposed individuals. Moreover, the causing agent(s) cannot be easily identified due to the multiplicity of pollution components. Whether an inflammatory mechanism plays a role, it is still controversial. Non invasive methods to study pulmonary inflammation have been introduced, that are suitable to study elevated number of subjects, particularly if they are healthy. The methods better standardized are induced sputum, exhaled nitric oxide and exhaled breath condensate.