Health and Economic Burden of the 2017 Portuguese Extreme Wildland Fires on Children

Abstract

Wildland fires release substantial amounts of hazardous contaminants, contributing to a decline in air quality and leading to serious health risks. Thus, this study aimed to understand the contributions of the 2017 extreme wildland fires in Portugal on children health, compared to 2016 (with burned area, in accordance with the average of the previous 15 years). The impact of long-term exposure to PM10 and NO2 concentrations, associated with wildland fires, on postneonatal mortality, bronchitis prevalence, and bronchitis symptoms in asthmatic children was estimated, as well as the associated costs. The excess health burden in children attributable to exposure to PM10 and NO2, was calculated based on WHO HRAPIE relative risks. Fire emissions were obtained from the Fire INventory from NCAR (FINN). The results obtained indicate that the smoke from wildfires negatively impacts children’s lung function (PM10 exposure: increase of 320 and 648 cases of bronchitis in 2016 and 2017; NO2 exposure: 24 and 40 cases of bronchitis symptoms in asthmatic children in 2016 and 2017) and postneonatal mortality (PM10 exposure: 0.2 and 0.4 deaths in 2016 and 2017). Associated costs were increased in 2017 by around 1 million € for all the evaluated health endpoints, compared to 2016.