Arisha Ahmed

• The Impact of Poor Air Quality on Hospitalisations of Multimorbid Patients: A Systematic Review
• Master of Pharmacy with Honours

Poor air quality often leads to hospitalisation of multimorbid patients. Multimorbidity is defined as the presence of two or more long-term conditions. We conducted a systematic review to examine the impact of air pollution on multimorbid patients, focusing on the five main air pollutants (particulate matter (PM), carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and ozone). We screened 1297 articles, 25 of which met our inclusion criteria. We categorised the impact on long-term conditions into five key areas: Mental health conditions (e.g., depression), Cardiovascular (e.g., heart failure), Pain (e.g., osteoarthritis), Liver (e.g., chronic hepatic diseases), Dependence (e.g., alcohol) and other. We found increased levels of PM exacerbated mental health conditions while cardiovascular, pain, dependence, and other conditions were affected by all five of the main air pollutants. There were no recorded pollutants that affected liver conditions. The review highlights the impact of air pollution and suggests future research should focus on strategies to mitigate exposure for patients in these multimorbidity clusters.

Funded by: Newcastle University Research Scholarship

Project Supervisor: Professor Sarah Slight