Air pollution exposure was associated with the acceleration of longitudinal changes in lung function in elderly: A community-based cohort study in Korea

<bold>Introduction:</bold> This study investigated the effects of exposure to PM, NO2, SO2, and CO on longitudinal changes in lung function in Korean adults. <bold>Methods:</bold> Participants were extracted from Ansung-Ansan cohort database. Participants were categorized into elderly (≥65yrs) and non-elderly (=65yrs) according to ages. The longitudinal associations between air pollutant concentrations and lung function were analyzed by a linear mixed-effect model with an unstructured covariance matrix. A linear mixed model included a subject-specific random intercept and random slope over time. <bold>Results:</bold> Among the 5,021 participants, 838(16.7%) and 4,183(83.3%) were categorized into elderly and non-elderly groups, respectively. A 10-μg/m³ increase in PM₁₀ and PM_2.5 were significantly associated with decreased FEV₁/FVC, FEV₁(L), and FEV₁(%) in both groups, but no difference was observed between the groups. A 1 ppb increase in SO2 was significantly associated with decreased FEV₁(L), FEV₁(%) and FVC(%) in elderly group. The significantly more decreased in FEV₁(L)(β=–0.026 vs β=0.011, p < 0.001), FEV₁(%)(β=–1.929 vs β=–0.176, p < 0.001) and FVC(%)(β=–1.923 vs β=–0.899, p = 0.001) were observed in elderly group. A 10 ppb increase in NO₂ was significantly associated with decreased FEV₁(%). The significant more decreased in FEV₁(%)(β=–3.226 vs β=–1.034, p=0.031) was observed in elderly group. A 10 ppb increase in CO was significantly associated with decreased FEV₁/FVC, FEV₁(L), and FEV₁(%) in both groups without significant differences. <bold>Conclusions:</bold> Air pollution exposure was associated with more acceleration of longitudinal change in lung function in the elderly.