Air Pollution Can Trigger Arrhythmias, Penn State University Study

MedPageToday -- Even healthy people can develop arrhythmias with acute exposure to air pollution, particularly fine particulate matter, researchers found. Each 10 µg/m3 increase in the concentration of particulate matter smaller than 2.5 µm in diameter was associated with an 8% increase in the number of preventricular contractions in the first 30 minutes (rate ratio 1.08, 95% CI 1.05 to 1.10, P<0.01), according to Duanping Liao, MD, PhD, of Penn State University in Hershey, Pa., and colleagues.

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