%0 Journal Article
%T Pollen and viruses contribute to spatio-temporal variation in asthma-related emergency department visits.
%A Katz DSW
%A Zigler CM
%A Bhavnani D
%A Balcer-Whaley S
%A Matsui EC
%J Environ Res
%V 257
%N 0
%D 2024 Jun 3
%M 38838752
%F 8.431
%R 10.1016/j.envres.2024.119346
%X <B>BACKGROUND: </B>Asthma exacerbations are an important cause of emergency department visits but much remains unknown about the role of environmental triggers including viruses and allergenic pollen. A better understanding of spatio-temporal variation in exposure and risk posed by viruses and pollen types could help prioritize public health interventions.<BR><B>OBJECTIVE: </B>Here we quantify the effects of regionally important Cupressaceae pollen, tree pollen, other pollen types, rhinovirus, seasonal coronavirus, respiratory syncytial virus, and influenza on asthma-related emergency department visits for people living near eight pollen monitoring stations in Texas.<BR><B>METHODS: </B>We used age stratified Poisson regression analyses to quantify the effects of allergenic pollen and viruses on asthma-related emergency department visits.<BR><B>RESULTS: </B>Young children (<5 years of age) had high asthma-related emergency department rates (24.1 visits/1,000,000 person-days), which were mainly attributed to viruses (51.2%). School-aged children also had high rates (20.7 visits/1,000,000 person-days), which were attributed to viruses (57.0%), Cupressaceae pollen (0.7%), and tree pollen (2.8%). Adults had lower rates (8.1 visits/1,000,000 person-days) which were attributed to viruses (25.4%), Cupressaceae pollen (0.8%), and tree pollen (2.3%). This risk was spread unevenly across space and time; for example, during peak Cuppressaceae season, this pollen accounted for 8.2% of adult emergency department visits near Austin where these plants are abundant, but 0.4% in cities like Houston where they are not; results for other age groups were similar.<BR><B>CONCLUSIONS: </B>Although viruses are a major contributor to asthma-related emergency department visits, airborne pollen can explain a meaningful portion of visits during peak pollen season and this risk varies over both time and space because of differences in plant composition.