In the study, the researchers compared the participants' places of residence with decades-long air quality indicators and assessed three main cardiovascular risk factors: arterial calcification, total volume of atherosclerotic plaques, and degree of vessel narrowing. It was found that an increase in PM2.5 concentration by just 1 µg/m³ raised the calcium index by 11%, the likelihood of pronounced atherosclerosis by 13%, and the risk of significant narrowing of the coronary arteries by almost 25%. Similar, but less pronounced correlations were noted for nitrogen oxides.
In women, the changes were particularly noticeable: prolonged exposure to PM2.5 more often led to severe forms of calcification and vessel narrowing, while in men, a greater plaque burden was observed. The mechanisms behind these differences remain unclear; however, the authors of the study emphasize that air pollution is an important and manageable risk factor for cardiovascular diseases that begins to have an impact long before any symptoms appear.
