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Background Few studies have estimated the attributable risk and economic cost of mental disorders (MDs) due to particulate matters with aerodynamic diameter of less than 2.5 µm (PM_2.5) exposure in Beijing.
Objectives This study aims to identify the possible correlation between PM_2.5 and risk of hospital admissions (HAs) for MDs in Beijing and calculate the attributable risk and economic cost.
Methods A generalized additive model (GAM) with controlling for time trend, meteorological conditions, holidays and day of the week was used to estimate the associations. Stratified analyses were performed by age, gender and season. We further estimated the health and economic burden of HAs for MDs attributable to PM_2.5.
Results A total of 17,252 HAs for MDs were collected. A 10 µg/m³ daily increase in PM_2.5 was associated with a statistically significant risk increase of 3.55% for HAs for MDs. The effects of PM_2.5 exposures on HAs for MDs were more pronounced in males, elderly (≥65 years old) individuals and in cold seasons. Using WHO's air quality guidelines as the reference, 15.12% of HAs (2,609 person-times out of 17,252 person-times) and 16.19% of the related medical expenses (51.86 million CNY out of 320.3 million CNY) for MDs were attributed to PM_2.5 during the study period.
Conclusion PM_2.5 accounts for substantial morbidity and economic burden of MDs for both the society and households, which shows environmental protections are essential to improve mental health status of the population.