Greater Fine Particulate Matter Linked to Increased Odds of Eczema
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter
WEDNESDAY, Nov. 13, 2024 -- The odds of eczema are increased with greater exposure to fine particulate matter of diameter ≤2.5 μm (PM2.5), according to a study published online Nov. 13 in PLOS ONE.
Gloria F. Chen, from the Yale School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticut, and colleagues examined the risk for eczema with PM2.5 exposure in a diverse national cohort of American adults in a cross-sectional study. Eczema cases in the All of Us Research Program were linked via three-digit zip code to average annual PM2.5 concentrations from the Center for Air, Climate, and Energy Solutions.
The researchers found that the 12,695 individuals with eczema lived in areas with significantly higher PM2.5 concentrations than the 274,127 without eczema (0.83 versus 0.81 x 10 µg/m3). In a univariate analysis, PM2.5 concentration was significantly associated with eczema (odds ratio, 1.97); the findings persisted in multivariable analyses after controlling for demographics and smoking status (odds ratio, 2.21) and with the addition of atopic comorbidities (odds ratio, 2.38).
"Our finding of an approximately twofold increased risk of eczema per 10 μg/m3 rise in PM2.5 is clinically relevant as well as actionable, as the United States Environmental Protection Agency's Air Quality Index is based on differences in PM2.5 concentrations of comparable orders of magnitude," the authors write.
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.
© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Posted November 2024
Read this next
Helping Others Linked to Higher Level of Cognitive Function
THURSDAY, Aug. 21, 2025 -- Helping others, both via formal volunteering and informal helping, is associated with higher levels of cognitive function and slower cognitive decline...
TAR-200 Monotherapy Promising for BCG-Unresponsive Bladder Cancer
THURSDAY, Aug. 21, 2025 -- For patients with Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG)-unresponsive high-risk non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC), an intravesical...
Work-Related Income Drops for Parents of Children Diagnosed With Type 1 Diabetes
THURSDAY, Aug. 21, 2025 -- Work-related income decreases sharply for mothers and fathers of children diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, with similar effects across sociodemographic...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.