Association of long-term exposure to fine particulate matter and incident dyslipidaemia: A longitudinal cohort study

Evidence of the effects of long-term exposure to fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) air pollution on the development of dyslipidaemia is limited. This study aimed to investigate the association between long-term exposure to ambient PM_2.5 and incident dyslipidaemia in a large cohort.

We studied 66,702 participants aged ≥18 years belonging to a cohort from a standard medical examination programme conducted in Taiwan between 2001 and 2014. The PM_2.5 concentration at each participant's address was estimated using a satellite-based spatiotemporal model at a high resolution (1 km²). A time-varying Cox regression model was used to examine the association between long-term exposure to ambient PM_2.5 and the development of dyslipidaemia. Additionally, sensitivity analyses were conducted to examine the stability of these associations.

Compared with participants exposed to the 1st tertile of PM_2.5, participants exposed to the 2nd and 3rd tertiles of PM_2.5 had respective hazard ratios of 1.02 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.98-1.06] and 1.08 (95%CI: 1.04-1.13) for incident dyslipidaemia. Sensitivity analyses generally yielded similar results.

Long-term exposure to ambient PM_2.5 is associated with a higher risk of dyslipidaemia. Global strategies for reducing air pollution are needed to prevent the development of dyslipidaemia.