The Science of the total environment
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Sci. Total Environ. · Oct 2011
Outdoor, but not indoor, nitrogen dioxide exposure is associated with persistent cough during the first year of life.
Because their lungs and immune system are not completely developed, children are more susceptible to respiratory disease and more vulnerable to ambient pollution. We assessed the relation between prenatal and postnatal nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)) levels and the development of lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI), wheezing and persistent cough during the first year of life. ⋯ Our results indicate that exposure to outdoor, but not indoor, NO(2) during the first year of life increases the risk of persistent cough.