Evaluation of the environmental epidemiologic data and methodology for the air quality standard in Beijing

To evaluate the relationship between exposure to air pollutants and respiratory emergency room visits, a generalized additive model (GAM) was used to analyze the exposure-effect relationship between air pollutants and respiratory emergency room visits. The results showed that NO₂, SO₂, and PM₁₀ have positive relationships with respiratory disease. Concentration increases of 10 μg/m³ in NO₂, SO₂, and PM₁₀ corresponded to 3.90% (95%CI 3.56-4.25), 0.81% (95%CI -0.09-1.72), and 0.64% (95%CI 0.55-0.74) increases in respiratory emergency room visits. In addition, there is a strong synergic effect of PM₁₀ and NO₂ on respiratory diseases. The threshold values of the national standard grade II limits used in Beijing should be adjusted. An appropriate standard could effectively promote a significant decline in respiratory room visits and would eventually be beneficial to air quality management in residential areas.