Changes on Stroke Burden Attributable to Ambient Fine Particulate Matter in China.

Objective: In recent decades, China has implemented a series of policies to address air pollution. We aimed to assess the health effects of these policies on stroke burden attributable to ambient fine particulate matter (PM _2.5).

Methods: Joinpoint regression was applied to explore the temporal tendency of stroke burden based on data from the Global Burden of Disease 2019 study.

Results: The age-standardized rates of disability-adjusted life year (DALY) for stroke attributable to ambient PM _2.5 in China, increased dramatically during 1990-2012, subsequently decreased at an annual percentage change (APC) of -1.98 [95% confidence interval ( CI): -2.26, -1.71] during 2012-2019. For ischemic stroke (IS), the age-standardized DALY rates doubled from 1990 to 2014, and decreased at an APC of -0.83 (95% CI: -1.33, -0.33) during 2014-2019. Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) showed a substantial increase in age-standardized DALY rates from 1990 to 2003, followed by declining trends, with APCs of -1.46 (95% CI: -2.74, -0.16) during 2003-2007 and -3.33 (95% CI: -3.61, -3.06) during 2011-2019, respectively. Conversely, the age-standardized DALY rates for subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) generally declined during 1990-2019.

Conclusion: Our results clarified the dynamic changes of the ambient PM _2.5-attributable stroke burden in China during 1990-2019, highlighting the health effects of air quality improvement policies.