Research has shown that air pollution is associated with risks of development and worsening of chronic diseases. The Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) is a numerical scale that reports air quality and health risk, and includes messages that advise on health risk reduction actions according to AQHI levels. Our study aimed to (1) characterize geographical variations between air pollution (AQHI) and health outcomes (incidence, prevalence, and health services use) of asthma, COPD, diabetes, and hypertension; (2) forecast the trend of associations using observed data; and (3) develop visualization tools that help the public identify risks of air pollution and health outcomes. Observed trends of AQHI and health outcomes from 2003 to 2014 were plotted and forecasted up to 2025, while maps showed their geographical variations. Overall, the highest incidence and prevalence of each disease were observed in regions with higher annual mean AQHI. Chronic diseases' acute health services use was higher in northern Ontario, while physician office visits were higher in southern Ontario. The positive correlations between AQHI and health outcomes in Ontario suggests that increasing public awareness of potential health risks of air pollution is important, especially among people with chronic diseases.

中文翻译：

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加拿大安大略省空气质量与健康结果之间的关联可视化和预测

研究表明，空气污染与慢性病的发展和恶化风险有关。空气质量健康指数 (AQHI) 是一个数字尺度，用于报告空气质量和健康风险，并包括根据 AQHI 水平就减少健康风险行动提出建议的信息。我们的研究旨在 (1) 描述空气污染 (AQHI) 与哮喘、COPD、糖尿病和高血压的健康结果（发病率、流行率和卫生服务使用）之间的地理差异；(2) 利用观测数据预测关联趋势；(3) 开发可视化工具，帮助公众识别空气污染风险和健康结果。绘制并预测到 2025 年的 2003 年至 2014 年 AQHI 和健康结果的观察趋势，同时地图显示了它们的地理差异。总体，在年平均空气质量指数较高的地区观察到每种疾病的发病率和流行率最高。安大略省北部的慢性病急性卫生服务使用率较高，而安大略省南部的医生就诊次数较高。安大略省 AQHI 与健康结果之间的正相关表明，提高公众对空气污染潜在健康风险的认识很重要，尤其是在慢性病患者中.