Understanding the effect of indoor air pollution on pneumonia in children under five in low and middle income countries: a systematic review of evidence

Adaji, Enemona Emmanuel; Ekezie, Winifred; Clifford, Michael; Phalkey, Revati

Abstract

Background

Exposure to indoor air pollution increases the risk of pneumonia in children, accounting for about a million deaths globally. This study investigates the individual effect of solid fuel, carbon monoxide
(CO), black carbon (BC) and PM2.5 on pneumonia in children under five in low and middle-income countries.

Methods

A systematic review was conducted to identify peer-reviewed and grey full-text documents without restrictions to study design, language or year of publication using nine databases, (EMBASE, PUBMED, EBSCO/CINAHL, SCOPUS , Web of Knowledge, WHO Library Database (WHOLIS), Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN), The World Meteorological Organization (WMO-WHO) and
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)).

Results

Exposure to solid fuel use showed a significant association to childhood pneumonia. Exposure to CO showed no association to childhood pneumonia. PM2.5 did not show any association when physically measured, while eight studies that used solid fuel as a proxy for PM2.5 all reported significant associations.

Conclusion

This review highlights the need to standardise measurement of exposure and outcome variables when investigating the effect of air pollution on pneumonia in children under 5. Future studies should account for BC, PM1 and the interaction between indoor and outdoor pollution and its cumulative impact on childhood pneumonia.

Citation

Adaji, E. E., Ekezie, W., Clifford, M., & Phalkey, R. (2019). Understanding the effect of indoor air pollution on pneumonia in children under five in low and middle income countries: a systematic review of evidence. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 26(4), 3208–3225. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-018-3769-1

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Nov 14, 2018
• Online Publication Date: Dec 19, 2018
• Publication Date: 2019-02
• Deposit Date: Nov 29, 2018
• Publicly Available Date: Dec 21, 2018
• Journal: Environmental Science and Pollution Research
• Print ISSN: 0944-1344
• Electronic ISSN: 1614-7499
• Publisher: Springer Verlag
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 26
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 3208–3225
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-018-3769-1
• Keywords: Indoor air pollution; Black Carbon; Particulate Matter; Carbon Monoxide; Pneumonia
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1337959
• Publisher URL: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11356-018-3769-1
• Additional Information: Received: 30 March 2018; Accepted: 15 November 2018; First Online: 19 December 2018; : ; : The authors declare that they have no competing interests.