Estimation of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases attributed to PM10 using AirQ model in Urmia during 2011-2017

Background: Quantification of the attributed effects of air pollution determines the impact of air pollutants on the community and shows the critical condition of air quality. This study aimed to quantify and estimate the cardiovascular and respiratory diseases attributed to PM10 in Urmia during 2011-2016. Methods: In this descriptive-analytic study, at first, hourly data of pollutant PM10 concentrations were received from air pollutants station located in the Department of Environmental Protection. The data were evaluated using AirQ2.2.3 software after primary and secondary processes and filtering. Results: The results showed that the mean annual concentration of PM10 during 2011-2016 was 88.66, 92.45, 81.22, 78.38, 113.78, and 92.67 μg /m3, respectively. The number of hospitalized cases due to respiratory diseases attributed to PM10 in this period was 486, 525, 459, 453, 684, and 552, respectively, and the number of cases due to cardiovascular diseases was 188, 203, 177, 175, 263, and 213, respectively. Conclusion: Considering the attributed health effects of PM10, the necessary measures should be taken to identify the causative agents and to understand the mechanisms of these processes and correct them.