{"id":88830,"date":"2026-09-29T16:41:01","date_gmt":"2026-09-29T08:41:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=88830"},"modified":"2026-09-29T16:41:01","modified_gmt":"2026-09-29T08:41:01","slug":"emergency-visits-rise-with-higher-pm2-5-levels-spore-study","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=88830","title":{"rendered":"Emergency visits rise with higher PM2.5 levels: S’pore Study"},"content":{"rendered":"


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SINGAPORE – Increased emergency department visits in Singapore for asthma and chronic respiratory disease have been linked to small spikes in fine-particle air pollution<\/span><\/a>, according to a Sept 28 study led by local researchers.<\/p>\n

This finding shows that people should monitor air quality advisories, and take precautions early rather than waiting until symptoms worsen, said the study\u2019s co-author Yohei Okada, a Duke-NUS Medical School assistant professor in prehospital and emergency research.<\/p>\n

This is especially since the impact of a small increase in PM2.5 concentrations can only become apparent a couple of days after the spike in the haze pollutants, he added.<\/p>\n

PM2.5 \u2013 particulate matter no bigger than 2.5 microns in diameter, smaller than the width of a strand of hair \u2013 is an ultra-fine pollutant that can penetrate deep into human lungs.<\/p>\n

It is one of the six pollutants measured in Singapore\u2019s Pollutant Standards Index (PSI), and is the dominant toxin during periods of transboundary haze.<\/p>\n

On Sept 29, the 24-hour PSI reading hit a new peak for the current haze season<\/span><\/a>, as air quality across Singapore\u2019s five regions entered the unhealthy range for the first time in two weeks.<\/p>\n

Past studies have shown that long-term exposure to PM2.5 on a regular basis has been linked to increased risk of death from heart and lung complications such as lung cancer or heart disease.<\/p>\n

But the new study, published on Sept 28 in the medical journal JAMA Network Open, indicates that even shorter-term exposure could also be linked to more emergency room visits.<\/p>\n

It was conducted by researchers from Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore General Hospital, the University of Miami, and Duke University.<\/p>\n

Said the Duke-NUS Medical School in a statement: \u201cThe findings provide new insights into the health effects of short-term air pollution in a tropical South-east Asian setting with relatively low background pollution, a context that remains understudied compared with other regions of the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

What the study found<\/h2>\n

Healthy air quality, according to the World Health Organisation, should not have PM2.5 concentrations exceeding 15 micrograms (mcg) per cubic m. The researchers used this figure as a reference level for their study.<\/p>\n

But during periods of haze such as that experienced in Singapore from September<\/span><\/a>, PM2.5 readings have reached over 100. On Sept 29, PM2.5 concentrations in eastern Singapore was 70 mcg per cubic m as at 1pm.<\/p>\n

Researchers found that for each 10 mcg per cubic m increase in PM2.5 above the 15 mcg per cubic m reference level, emergency department visits for asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease increased by 3.2 per cent over the following two days.<\/p>\n

For the study, the researchers compiled the asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary<\/span><\/a> disease-related emergency department visits from February 2016 to December 2022.<\/p>\n

A total of 74,839 visits were analysed, of which 43,446 resulted in hospital admissions, and 1,369 patients died within 30 days.<\/p>\n

The data was extracted from all public hospitals via a government administrative and health data platform.<\/p>\n

They also retrieved data on PM2.5 levels and other environmental parameters, such as temperature, humidity and rainfall, from the website of the National Environment Agency.<\/p>\n

Statistical analyses were performed to see if there was any correlation in the data.<\/p>\n

They found that asthma-related emergency department visits specifically rose by 4.4 per cent over the two-day window between an increase in PM2.5 concentration and emergency room visits.<\/p>\n

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease-related visits also tended to increase, though the association was less clear at these lower PM2.5 concentrations.<\/p>\n

The researchers observed stronger evidence of an increase in such visits at higher pollution levels, which suggested that the respiratory effects of PM2.5 could become more apparent with increased exposure.<\/p>\n

While the researchers also analysed subsequent hospital admissions and 30-day mortality, they observed no statistically significant associations with the pollution spikes.<\/p>\n

Of the data collected, nearly 60 per cent of these patients were male and more than 75 per cent had a monthly household income of less than $2,000.<\/p>\n