Abstract
WHAT IS ALREADY KNOWN ABOUT THIS TOPIC? Numerous epidemiological studies have documented the association between ambient nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)) and mortality and morbidity of respiratory diseases, however, research on the effect of NO(2) on the length of hospital stay (LOS) and hospitalization expenditure is limited. WHAT IS ADDED BY THIS REPORT? This study collected the respiratory hospitalization, hospital expenditure, and LOS for respiratory diseases from 2017-2019 in Shanxi, China, and comprehensively evaluated the association between ambient NO(2) exposure and respiratory hospitalization, expenditure, and LOS. WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTICE? This study provides evidence on the association between ambient NO(2) and respiratory burden, suggesting that continuously reducing the NO(2) concentrations could prevent respiratory disease-associated hospital admissions and decrease the relative burden in Shanxi Province and other similar regions.