A Study of CO Emission Sources and Their Impacts on the Respiratory Systems of Patients in Al-Muthanna Governorate
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32792/utq/utjsci/v12i1.1320Abstract
This study examines carbon monoxide (CO) emissions and their health effects on individuals with respiratory conditions such as asthma, COPD, and bronchitis. CO sources include biomass burning, industrial processes, and vehicle exhaust, with CO's high hemoglobin affinity impairing oxygen transport. The current study aimed to assess CO emissions' impact on respiratory health in Al-Muthanna Governorate. From November 2023 to July 2024, CO levels were measured in high-emission areas, including a cement factory, oil refineries, and seven fuel stations, using Drager X am 5000 devices. Two control areas, Hay Al Hussein and Al Doha Residential Compound, were used for comparison.
The study involved 120 participants: 60 fuel station workers, 20 refinery residents, and 40 controls. The highest CO concentration was from the cement plant (48.98 ppm), with the lowest 100 meters from station S5 (1.67 ppm). Control areas had no detectable CO (0.00 ppm). Health assessments included blood (WBC, Lym, Neu, Eos), lung function (FVC, FEV, PEF), and immunological markers (IgE). Findings showed high CO levels near sources, exceeding global limits. Affected individuals aged 30–50 had increased eosinophils (7.60–9.90%), reduced lung function (FVC 54–81%, FEV 27.33–49.75%, PEF 16–26.75%), and elevated IgE (170.5–518.3 U/mL), with bronchial allergies more common than asthma.
Received:2024-11-09
Revised: 2024-12-12
Accepted: 2024-12-23
References
Veličković, T. (2021). Development of united nation and european union policy on air pollution. Facta universitatis-Law and Politics, 19(2), 121-134.
Saraga, D. Ε., Querol, X., Duarte, R. M., Aquilina, N. J., Canha, N., Alvarez, E. G., ... & Carslaw, N. (2023). Source apportionment for indoor air pollution: Current challenges and future directions. Science of The Total Environment, 165744.
Sharma, A. K., Sharma, M., Sharma, A. K., & Sharma, M. (2023). Mapping the impact of environmental pollutants on human health and environment: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Geochemical Exploration, 107325.
Suman, S., Rajak, D. K., Kumar, G., Kumar, B., & Jibran, J. A. (2023). A Detailed Review on the Environmental Problem and Remediation of Anthropogenic Biomass Waste. Anthropogenic Environmental Hazards: Compensation and Mitigation, 183-201.
Tahery, N., Zarea, K., Cheraghi, M., Hatamzadeh, N., Farhadi, M., Dobaradarn, S., & Mohammadi, M. J. (2021). Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and air pollution: a review. Jundishapur Journal of Chronic Disease Care, 10(1).
Muleya, J. M. (2022). Investigating the use of CO-oximetry for simultaneous measurement of carboxyhaemoglobin and methaemoglobin in post-mortem blood (Master's thesis, Faculty of Health Sciences).
Mao, Q., Kawaguchi, A. T., Mizobata, S., Motterlini, R., Foresti, R., & Kitagishi, H. (2021). Sensitive quantification of carbon monoxide in vivo reveals a protective role of circulating hemoglobin in CO intoxication. Communications Biology, 4(1), 425.
Edginton, S., O’Sullivan, D. E., King, W., & Lougheed, M. D. (2019). Effect of outdoor particulate air pollution on FEV1 in healthy adults: a systematic review and metaanalysis. Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 76(8), 583-591.
Naclerio, R., Ansotegui, I. J., Bousquet, J., Canonica, G. W., d'Amato, G., Rosario, N., ... & Rouadi, P. (2020). International expert consensus on the management of allergic rhinitis (AR) aggravated by air pollutants: impact of air pollution on patients with AR: current knowledge and future strategies. World Allergy Organization Journal, 13(3), 100106.
Tripathi, R., Yang, X., Ryter, S. W., & Wang, B. (2021). Carbon monoxide as a therapeutic for airway diseases: contrast and comparison of various CO delivery modalities. Current topics in medicinal chemistry, 21(32), 2890.
Mahmoud, A., Al-Fanharawi, A. A., & Al-Taee, I. (2022). Assessment of Primary Parameters in Sawa Lake and Their Impact on Productivity. Asian Journal of Water, Environment and Pollution, 19(6), 59-65.
Radi, R. H., & Al-Fanharawi, A. A. (2022). Water quality assessment of Sawyer River using some environmental indices. BNIHS, ISSN, 1343-4292.
Dalil, I. A., & Al-Fanharawi, A. A. (2023, November). Study the Concentration of PAHS in Al-Rumayth River Water-Iraq. In IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science (Vol. 1259, No. 1, p. 012037). IOP Publishing.
Shaheed, S. H., Ghawi, A. H., & Al-Obaedi, J. T. S. (2021). Air pollution assessment at University of Al-Qadisiyah associated with traffic from neighbouring roads. In Journal of Physics: Conference Series (Vol. 1895, No. 1, p. 012034). IOP Publishing.
Andersen, Z. J., Bønnelykke, K., Hvidberg, M., Jensen, S. S., Ketzel, M., Loft, S., ... & Raaschou-Nielsen, O. (2012). Long-term exposure to air pollution and asthma hospitalisations in older adults: a cohort study. Thorax, 67(1), 6-11.
Pakkasela, J., Ilmarinen, P., Honkamäki, J., Tuomisto, L. E., Andersén, H., Piirilä, P., ... & Lehtimäki, L. (2020). Age-specific incidence of allergic and non-allergic asthma. BMC pulmonary medicine, 20, 1-9.
Bui, D. S., Lodge, C. J., Perret, J. L., Lowe, A., Hamilton, G. S., Thompson, B., ... & Dharmage, S. C. (2021). Trajectories of asthma and allergies from 7 years to 53 years and associations with lung function and extrapulmonary comorbidity profiles: a prospective cohort study. The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, 9(4), 387-396.
Grzywa-Celińska, A., Krusiński, A., & Milanowski, J. (2020). ‘Smoging kills’-effects of air pollution on human respiratory system. Annals of Agricultural and Environmental Medicine, 27(1), 1-5.
Chatkin, J., Correa, L., & Santos, U. (2022). External environmental pollution as a risk factor for asthma. Clinical reviews in allergy & immunology, 62(1), 72-89.
Martín-Ruiz, S., Gutiérrez-Collar, C., De Vera, E. F. V., Bernabé-Barrios, M. J., de Blas, C. S., Konschake, M., ... & Maranillo, E. (2021). The bronchial segmentation and its anatomical variations. A clinical-anatomic and bronchoscopy study. Annals of Anatomy-Anatomischer Anzeiger, 235, 151677.
Carvalho, H. (2021). New WHO global air quality guidelines: more pressure on nations to reduce air pollution levels. The Lancet Planetary Health, 5(11), e760-e761.
Hussain, A., Khan, N. U., Ullah, M., Imran, M., Ibrahim, M., Hussain, J., ... & Attique, F. (2022). Brick kilns air pollution and its impact on the peshawar city. Pollution, 8(4), 1266-1273.
Ali, N. K., Ali, I. S., Abdullah, A. H., & Abass, K. S. (2020). Estimation of some hematological parameters among cement factory workers in Kirkuk City. EurAsian Journal of BioSciences, 14, 4575-4579.
Maulood, K. B., Khan, M., Sulaiman, S. A. S., & Khan, A. H. (2023). Assessing the Impact of Health Education Intervention on Asthma prevention Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices: A Cross-Sectional Study in Erbil, Iraq.
Ahmed, M. Q., & Hussein, T. A. (2023). The Role of TNF-α and Total IgE in Pathogenicity of Iraqi Fuel Stations Workers with Allergic Rhinitis. Ibn AL-Haitham Journal for Pure and Applied Sciences, 36(1), 15-24.
Zheng, K., Zeng, Z., Tian, Q., Huang, J., Zhong, Q., & Huo, X. (2023). Epidemiological evidence for the effect of environmental heavy metal exposure on the immune system in children. Science of the Total Environment, 868, 161691.
Glencross, D. A., Ho, T. R., Camina, N., Hawrylowicz, C. M., & Pfeffer, P. E. (2020). Air pollution and its effects on the immune system. Free Radical Biology and Medicine, 151, 56-68.
Gangwar, R. S., Bevan, G. H., Palanivel, R., Das, L., & Rajagopalan, S. (2020). Oxidative stress pathways of air pollution mediated toxicity: Recent insights. Redox biology, 34, 101545.
Benhelal, E., Shamsaei, E., & Rashid, M. I. (2021). Challenges against CO2 abatement strategies in cement industry: A review. Journal of Environmental Sciences, 104, 84- 101.
Mohamad, N., Muthusamy, K., Embong, R., Kusbiantoro, A., & Hashim, M. H. (2022). Environmental impact of cement production and Solutions: A review. Materials Today: Proceedings, 48, 741-746.
Robinot, R., Hubert, M., de Melo, G. D., Lazarini, F., Bruel, T., Smith, N., ... & Chakrabarti, L. A. (2020). SARS-CoV-2 infection damages airway motile cilia and impairs mucociliary clearance. BioRxiv, 2020-10.
Gordon, S. B., Bruce, N. G., Grigg, J., Hibberd, P. L., Kurmi, O. P., Lam, K. B. H & Martin, W. J. (2014). Respiratory risks from household air pollution in low- and middle-income countries. The lancet Respiratory medicine, 2(10), 823-860.
Nadeem, A., Siddiqui, N., Alharbi, N. O., & Alharbi, M. M. (2014). Airway and systemic oxidant-antioxidant dysregulation in asthma: a possible scenario of oxidants spill over from lung into blood. Pulmonary pharmacology & therapeutics, 29(1), 31-40.
Havet, A., Hulo, S., Cuny, D., Riant, M., Occelli, F., Cherot-Kornobis, N., ... & Dauchet, L. (2020). Residential exposure to outdoor air pollution and adult lung function, with focus on small airway obstruction. Environmental research, 183, 109161.
Shin, S., Bai, L., Burnett, R. T., Kwong, J. C., Hystad, P., van Donkelaar, A., ... & Chen, H. (2021). Air pollution as a risk factor for incident chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma. A 15-year population-based cohort study. American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine, 203(9), 1138-1148.
Morici, G., Cibella, F., Cogo, A., Palange, P., & Bonsignore, M. R. (2020). Respiratory effects of exposure to traffic-related air pollutants during exercise. Frontiers in Public Health, 8, 575137.
Guo, C., Lv, S., Liu, Y., & Li, Y. (2022). Biomarkers for the adverse effects on respiratory system health associated with atmospheric particulate matter exposure. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 421, 126760.
Le, L. T., Quang, K. B. V., Vo, T. V., Nguyen, T. M. T., & Bui, X. T. (2024). Environmental and health impacts of air pollution: A mini-review. Vietnam Journal of Science, Technology and Engineering, 66(1), 120-128.
Downloads
Published
License
Copyright (c) 2025 University of Thi-Qar Journal of Science
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
