INVESTIGATING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SULFUR DIOXIDE CONCENTRATION LEVELS AND HOSPITAL ADMISSION RATES FOR ASTHMA IN NEW YORK STATE

In recent decades numerous advances in technological innovations and industrialization dominated many megacities around the world. This is especially true in New York City, where the demand for rapid urbanization due to increased population is becoming a major impetus in current and future urban planning. With rapid urbanization comes both financial benefits and environmental hazards. Air pollution may be causing health related issues such as asthma. Common air pollutants include Carbon Monoxide (CO), Lead (Pb), Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2), Ozone (O3), PM10, PM2.5, and Sulfur Dioxide (SO2). This research focuses on the SO2 concentration levels in New York and its relationship to respiratory illness. Data from 2009 to 2020 was analyzed. Air pollutant concentration data for New York State (SO2, NO2, Ozone) was collected from the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Air Quality Download database. Asthma-related Emergency Department (ED) visit rate per 10,000 people was collected from the New York State Department of Health. Correlation coefficients and r-squared values were calculated to investigate the relationship between the variables.

The Center for Disease Control confirms that SO2 is known to cause irritation to the eyes, nose, and throat. Consequently, it is very common for respiratory issues to occur, including bronchitis and asthma attacks, and are commonly associated together. It was hypothesized that an increase in SO2 levels will have a directly proportional relationship with the amount of hospital visit rates relating to asthmatic issues. SO2 concentrations showed an overall decrease in AQL over time. Ozone and NO2 both depicted no clear trend for their AQL. Relative to ED visits in NYC: SO2 and NO2 showed a correlation coefficient of 0.47, with 0.26 for ozone. The hypothesis was not fully supported. Correlation coefficients between the ED asthmatic visit rates and the air pollutants in NYS are concluded to have some significance at a lower level. High SO2 levels in the air may have contributed to respiratory issues. Future research will explore different time parameters such pollutant concentrations prior to 2008, and concentration variation based on time of day. Additional pollutants like PM 2.5 and CO can be analyzed, as well as a larger database of medical records beyond ED visits in order to establish statistically valid conclusions.