The Health Effects Institute PAPA-SAN
Public Health and Air Pollution in Asia:
Science Access on the Net
Summary of Results by Country
Mainland (110 reports)
The most recent literature search identified 110 pertinent reports on the health effects of outdoor air pollution in mainland China, published between 1980 and September 2007. Of these, nearly two-thirds estimated the health effects of exposure to both particulate matter (PM) and gaseous pollutants. The rest estimated the effects of exposure to PM only or to gaseous pollutants only. Some estimated the effects of exposure on the basis of residential proximity to industrial facilities or mobile sources. Most of the reports described studies conducted in metropolitan areas, such as Beijing or Shanghai, or in industrial cities, such as Chongqing, Guangzhou, Lanzhou, Shenyang, or Wuhan.
The principal health outcomes studied were mortality and respiratory symptoms and disease. Other reports studied biomarkers, birth outcomes, hospital admissions, and lung cancer incidence or made health-impact assessments, estimating the health and economic benefits of reductions in air pollution. In the 1980s, the cross-sectional study design was widely used to investigate the relationship between ambient pollution and lung cancer morbidity and the prevalence of respiratory symptoms and disease. As more routine and reliable air quality–monitoring data became available in more large cities in the early 1990s, more time-series studies were conducted, investigating changes in all-cause and cause-specific morbidity and mortality in relation to changes in urban air pollution.
Twenty-five reports of studies conducted in Hong Kong were identified. Most of these examined the relationship between ambient pollution and respiratory symptoms and disease as well as mortality and hospital admissions; most used time-series or cross-sectional study designs. Most also examined the health effects of exposure to PM, NOx, and SO2. Fourteen reports described the effect of exposure to O3. A few studies estimated the effects of restrictions on sulfur in fuel oil and industrial air pollution.
Eighty reports of studies in Taipei,China were identified. Half were conducted in the south, where petrochemical plants and heavy industrial complexes are located. More than half estimated the health effects of exposure to both PM and gaseous pollutants. The rest estimated these health effects on the basis of residential proximity to petrochemical and industrial facilities and to traffic. Respiratory symptoms and disease and birth outcomes were the principal health outcomes studied. Mortality, biomarkers, hospital admissions, lung cancer incidence, and school absences were studied as well.
To learn more about air pollution in China, please visit the China page on the CAI-Asia Web site.
Among the 60 reports identified of studies conducted in Japan, the majority focused on respiratory symptoms and disease. The rest focused on mortality, hospital admissions, lung cancer incidence, birth outcomes, school absences, ocular symptoms, atopic dermatitis, and biomarkers. Most were cross-sectional and time-series studies. About two-thirds of the reports estimated the health effects of exposure to PM, gaseous pollutants, or both. The rest assessed these effects of exposure on the basis of residential proximity to industrial facilities and mobile sources or the effects of volcanic ash and acid fog.
To learn more about air pollution in Japan, please visit the Japan page on the CAI-Asia Web site.
Fifty-one reports of studies conducted in South Korea were identified. Most were conducted in the Seoul and Incheon areas and focused on mortality, hospital admissions, and respiratory symptoms and disease. The principal study design was time series.
To learn more about air pollution in South Korea, please visit the South Korea page on the CAI-Asia Web site.
Table 4. Research in South Korea
Note: Because some studies in China, Japan, and South Korea included results from more than one country, the numbers of studies listed by country total more than 421.
Among the 9 reports of studies in Indonesia identified, three evaluated the health consequences and economic effects of exposure to haze resulting from forest fires in southeast Asia in 1997, two assessed the effects of exposure to ambient lead, and the rest estimated the effects of exposure to ambient pollution in general.
To learn more about air pollution in Indonesia, please visit the Indonesia page on the CAI-Asia Web site.
Table 5. Research in Indonesia
Three reports of studies in Malaysia were identified; two of these estimated the health effects of exposure to haze resulting from forest fires in southeast Asia in 1997, including mortality and respiratory hospitalizations.
To learn more about air pollution in Malaysia, please visit the Malaysia page on the CAI-Asia Web site.
Among the 10 reports of studies in Singapore that were identified, three assessed children’s respiratory symptoms and diseases, such as asthma. One estimated bone-marrow response to acute air pollution from forest fires in southeast Asia.
To learn more about air pollution in Singapore, please visit the Singapore page on the CAI-Asia Web site.
Table 7. Research in Singapore
Twenty-six reports describing studies in Thailand were identified. Most were conducted in Bangkok and nearby areas. One-third estimated the health effects of exposure to PM and gaseous pollutants. A quarter estimated the effects of exposure to PM only. The remainder estimated these effects of exposure on the basis of residential proximity to traffic and power plants. Respiratory symptoms, respiratory disease, and mortality were the major health outcomes studied, using panel, cross-sectional, and time-series study designs.
To learn more about air pollution in Thailand, please visit the Thailand page on the CAI-Asia Web site.
India (44 reports)
Forty-three reports of studies in India were identified. Many were conducted in the northern and western areas of the country, including Delhi, Mumbai, and Ahmedabad, and evaluated respiratory symptoms and disease using cross-sectional study designs. Half of the reports estimated the effects of exposure to both PM and gaseous pollutants. Half estimated these effects of exposure on the basis of residential proximity to air pollution sources and haze.
Bangladesh (2 reports), Pakistan (3 reports), and Sri Lanka (3 reports)
Two reports from Bangladesh, three from Pakistan, and three from Sri Lanka were also identified.
To learn more about air pollution in these countries, please visit the Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka pages on the CAI-Asia Web site.
Table 9. Research in Bangladesh
Table 10. Research in India
Table 11. Research in Pakistan
Table 12. Research in Sri LankaAdditional Information from Separate Literature Search in Sri Lanka
Dr. Sumal Nandasena at the University of Kelaniya has conducted an in-depth country-specific search to identify studies in Sri Lanka. The search strategyOther Asian Countries
No reports were identified from Bhutan, Burma, Cambodia, Nepal, Philippines, or Vietnam. However, you can learn more about air pollution in these countries at the CAI-Asia Web site.
More Information
If you have information on the health effects of air pollution in Asian countries not included here, please send it to PAPA@healtheffects.org and we will update our records.
The CAI-Asia Web site includes information on air quality monitoring and modeling, emission inventories, measuring impact, climate change, policies and instruments, education, and socioeconomic contexts in Asian countries. Various sources of air pollution are covered as well, including stationary, mobile, indoor, and area sources.
Read more about study designs, pollutants, and abbreviations commonly found in air pollution research. For detailed information on our search and review methods, please download the PAPA-SAN Literature Review Manual.
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