Pollution

Pollution

Association Between Urban Air Pollution Exposure, Respiratory Morbidity, and Health-Related Quality of Life Among Adults

Document Type : Original Research Paper

Authors
Department of Community Health Nursing, College of Nursing, University of Baghdad, Baghdad, Iraq
10.22059/poll.2026.416808.3387
Abstract
Air pollution is a major environmental and public health challenge, particularly in urban areas of developing countries where pollutant levels frequently exceed international safety standards. This study aimed to evaluate the association between air pollution exposure, respiratory symptoms, and health-related quality of life among adults residing in urban areas of Al-Diwaniyah City, Iraq. A cross-sectional study was conducted in 24 primary healthcare centers from January to March 2026. A total of 400 adults were recruited using a convenience sampling technique. Data were collected using the Air Quality Perception (AQP) scale, the European Community Respiratory Health Survey (ECRHS), and the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire.
The mean age of participants was 38 ± 10.3 years, and 52.0% were males. Overall, 81.0% of participants reported a moderate perception of air pollution, whereas 39.0% had chronic respiratory diseases. Poor health-related quality of life was identified in 57.3% of participants. Perceived air pollution was significantly associated with chronic respiratory diseases, respiratory health indicators and overall quality of life (all P < 0.001). In addition, perceived air pollution showed significant negative correlations with the physical (r = −0.440), psychological (r = −0.332), social (r = −0.362), and environmental (r = −0.307) domains of quality of life (all P < 0.001).
The findings indicate that air pollution exposure has a substantial adverse effect on respiratory health and quality of life among adults living in urban areas and emphasize the need for effective environmental and public health interventions to reduce pollution-related health risks.
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