Cross-sectional association between residential exposure to ambient particulate air pollution and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein as a marker of systemic inflammation among adults aged 18 – 79 years in Germany

Background:

Exposure to traffic-related air pollution has been linked to the development and progression of cardiometabolic diseases, where systemic inflammation might act as an underlying mechanism. Based on a large nationwide sample of adults aged 18 – 79 years in Germany, we analyzed the cross-sectional association of residential exposure to ambient particulate matter (PM10) pollution and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) as a marker of systemic inflammation.

Methods:

Data on serum hsCRP levels and sociodemographic, behavioral and anthropometric characteristics were available from the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Adults (2008 – 2011, N = 7,115). Municipality-level data on population-weighted mean annual concentration of PM10 in 2009 was assigned to each participant. Associations with log-transformed hsCRP were analyzed using random-intercept multi-level linear regression models including all participants with complete information.

Results:

Among 6,768 adults aged 18 – 79 years residing in 162 municipalities, respective means (5th to 95th percentiles) amounted to 1.15 mg/L (0.17 – 8.43) for hsCRP and to 18.5 µg/m³ (12.5 – 24.8) for residential exposure to ambient PM10. The highest geometric mean of hsCRP (1.30 mg/L) was found among persons in the highest PM10 exposure category (>= 25.0 µg/m³). However, no statistically significant association of ambient PM10 exposure with hsCRP was observed in uni- and multivariable models.

Conclusion:

Identifying and assessing the source-specific harmful components of ambient air pollution in population-based studies is essential for unravelling the association between air pollution and cardiometabolic diseases but remains challenging.