BMJ  2005;331 (5 November), doi:10.1136/bmj.331.7524.0-c

Chimneys reduced COPD in China

The incidence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease was markedly reduced in one Chinese county after chimneys were installed in households with previously unvented coal stoves. Chapman and colleagues (p 1050) followed up for 16 years a cohort of more than 20 000 people who were born into homes with unvented coal stoves. More than 80% subsequently changed to stoves with chimneys and, when compared with people still without chimneys, their risk for developing COPD almost halved. The reduction in risk became unequivocal about 10 years after the introduction of chimneys.

Credit: MARK HENLEY/PANOS

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Improvement in household stoves and risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in Xuanwei, China: retrospective cohort study

Robert S Chapman, Xingzhou He, Aaron E Blair, and Qing Lan
BMJ 2005 331: 1050. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]