Air pollution could be a big factor that influences the severity of a Covid-19 infection.
Chronic, long term exposure to smoke, soot or dirt in the atmosphere could increase a Covid patient’s chances of needing ICU (intensive care unit) care by 13 percent, or dying from the virus by 11 percent.
The risk was still apparent at air particulate levels that are considered to be ‘safe’ and within levels set by the US Environmental Protection Agency.
Researchers from Mount Sinai Hospital checked the air pollution levels in the neighbourhoods of 6,500 Covid patients being treated at one of seven hospitals in New York during one of the epidemic’s first waves between March and August, 2020.
They checked for higher particulate matter, such as smoke, soot and dirt, nitrogen dioxide and black carbon before factoring in the treatment the patients themselves needed, including intensive care treatment and intubation, and whether they survived the infection.
Overall, chronic exposure to air pollutants—even at supposedly safe levels—increased the risk of dying from a Covid infection by 11 percent, and of needing ICU treatment by 13 percent.
(Source: American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, 2021; doi: 10.1164/rccm.202104-0845OC)
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