Particular matter influences the incidence of acute otitis media in children

• Published in: Scientific reports 2021-10, Vol.11 (1), p.19730-19730, Article 19730
• Main Authors: Park, Mina, Han, Jiyeon, Park, Jiwon, Jang, Myoung-jin, Park, Moo Kyun
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 692/308; 692/499; 692/699; 704/172; 704/844; Acute Disease; Age Factors; Age groups; Air Pollutants; Air Pollution; Antibiotics; Child; Child, Preschool; Children; Disease Susceptibility; Ear diseases; Environmental Exposure; Environmental research; Exposure; Female; Humanities and Social Sciences; Humans; Incidence; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Male; multidisciplinary; Otitis media; Otitis Media - epidemiology; Otitis Media - etiology; Particle Size; Particulate matter; Particulate Matter - adverse effects; Public Health Surveillance; Republic of Korea - epidemiology; Risk Factors; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Seasons
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-99247-3

Particulate matter (PM) is the main component of air pollution. Children are vulnerable to PM and acute otitis media (AOM), which is one of the most common diseases in children. However, studies on the relationship between AOM in children and PM are rare and their results are inconsistent. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of PM on AOM in children on the basis of the Korea National Health Insurance service (NHIS) claims data. NHIS claim data from 2008 to 2015 was used to identify outpatient visits, antibiotic use to treat AOM, and demographic data. This data was combined with the data on PM 2.5 (≤ 2.5 μm) and PM 10 (≤ 10 μm according to its aerodynamic diameter) level extracted from air pollution data from Korean National Institute of Environmental Research for 16 administrative regions. The children with AOM were divided into three age groups (