Acute Health Effects of Wildfire Smoke Exposure During a Compound Event: A Case-Crossover Study of the 2016 Great Smoky Mountain Wildfires
Duncan S, Reed C, Spurlock T, Sugg MM, Runkle JD. 2023. Acute Health Effects of Wildfire Smoke Exposure During a Compound Event: A Case-Crossover Study of the 2016 Great Smoky Mountain Wildfires. GeoHealth. 7:13 pages
ABSTRACT: The 2016 wildfires in the southern Appalachian Mountains in the United States burned over 150,000 acres. The smoke released by these fires resulted in concentrations of air pollutants well above federal regulations. Exposure to this smoke may result in more visits to the emergency room (ER) for respiratory and cardiovascular illnesses such as asthma and heart disease. To learn how this smoke impacted the health of people living and working in western North Carolina, we looked at data from ERs for these health issues and compared it with increases in air pollution from these wildfires. We found significant increases in odds of visiting the ER up to 7 days after exposure to this smoke. We found that people over 55 years old and Black/African Americans were more likely than other groups to visit the ER for these reasons. We also found counties with more and larger wildfires also led to worse higher odds of these illnesses in some cases. This is the first study exploring how these fires impact how many people go to the ER for respiratory and cardiovascular problems.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Duncan, Sara; Reed, Charlie; Spurlock, Taylin; Sugg, Margaret; Runkle, Jennifer
- Units
- GRSM
- Keywords
- African Americans, Chimney Tops 2 Fire, climate change, human health, racial justice, visitors, wildfires