RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 PM10, and children's respiratory symptoms and lung function in the PATY study JF European Respiratory Journal JO Eur Respir J FD European Respiratory Society SP 538 OP 547 DO 10.1183/09031936.00002611 VO 40 IS 3 A1 Gerard Hoek A1 Sam Pattenden A1 Saskia Willers A1 Temenuga Antova A1 Eleonora Fabianova A1 Charlotte Braun-Fahrländer A1 Francesco Forastiere A1 Ulrike Gehring A1 Heike Luttmann-Gibson A1 Leticia Grize A1 Joachim Heinrich A1 Danny Houthuijs A1 Nicole Janssen A1 Boris Katsnelson A1 Anna Kosheleva A1 Hanns Moshammer A1 Manfred Neuberger A1 Larisa Privalova A1 Peter Rudnai A1 Frank Speizer A1 Hana Slachtova A1 Hana Tomaskova A1 Renata Zlotkowska A1 Tony Fletcher YR 2012 UL http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/40/3/538.abstract AB Studies of the impact of long-term exposure to outdoor air pollution on the prevalence of respiratory symptoms and lung function in children have yielded mixed results, partly related to differences in study design, exposure assessment, confounder selection and data analysis. We assembled respiratory health and exposure data for >45,000 children from comparable cross-sectional studies in 12 countries. 11 respiratory symptoms were selected, for which comparable questions were asked. Spirometry was performed in about half of the children. Exposure to air pollution was mainly characterised by annual average concentrations of particulate matter with a 50% cut-off aerodynamic diameter of 10 μm (PM10) measured at fixed sites within the study areas. Positive associations were found between the average PM10 concentration and the prevalence of phlegm (OR per 10 μg·m−3 1.15, 95% CI 1.02–1.30), hay fever (OR 1.20, 95% CI 0.99–1.46), bronchitis (OR 1.08, 95% CI 0.98–1.19), morning cough (OR 1.15, 95% CI 1.02–1.29) and nocturnal cough (OR 1.13, 95% CI 0.98–1.29). There were no associations with diagnosed asthma or asthma symptoms. PM10 was not associated with lung function across all studies combined. Our study adds to the evidence that long-term exposure to outdoor air pollution, characterised by the concentration of PM10, is associated with increased respiratory symptoms.