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Updated: May 26, 2025

Breath Collection from Children for Disease Biomarker Discovery
Published on: February 14, 2019
Residential Proximity Land Use Characteristics and Exhaled Volatile Organic Compounds' Impact on Pulmonary Function
Bo-Yu Hsiao1,2, Chun-Sheng Huang3, Chang-Fu Wu1,3,4
1Population Health Research Center, National Taiwan University, Taipei 10055, Taiwan.
Background:
Urban air pollution adversely affects children's respiratory systems, but the impact of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) on children's pulmonary function remains unclear. This study aims to identify exhaled VOCs linked to land use characteristics and reduced pulmonary function in asthmatic children, as well as to explore environmental thresholds influencing VOC exposure levels.
Methods:
We enrolled 97 asthmatic children, aged 7 to 20, from Changhua County, Taiwan, and collected personal and residential data, collected exhaled VOC samples, and conducted pulmonary function tests. Land use characteristics were derived from the children's residential addresses. This study used two models to explore the relationships between land use, VOC levels, and pulmonary function.
Results:
Our results show that m/p-xylene, 1,3,5-trimethylbenzene, and 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene were key contributors to FEV1/FVC and significantly predicted FEV1/FVC < 90% (AUC = 0.66; 95% CI: 0.53 to 0.79). These VOCs were also linked to major road areas within a 300 m buffer around children's homes.
Conclusions:
This study fills a research gap on low-level outdoor VOC exposure and pediatric respiratory health, examining 1,3,5-trimethylbenzene, 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene, and m/p-xylene as potential biomarkers for impaired pulmonary function in children.
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