Effects of ozone on pulmonary function: the relationship of response to dose.

A dose-response relationship for the effects of ozone on pulmonary function in humans has been derived using the concept of internal thoracic dose. This quantity, which represents the dose of inhaled pollutant capable of reaching and affecting target sites in the lower respiratory tract, was estimated using a mathematical model derived in part from theory and in part from data obtained using human and animal subjects. The model was applied to ozone exposures of individuals ranging in age from infants to adults over age 65 and for exercise conditions ranging from rest to heavy exercise (greater than 6 times resting minute ventilation). The dose model was successfully used to compare results from clinical studies in which subjects were exposed under disparate conditions of exercise, exposure concentration and exposure duration. The model can also be applied to estimate doses to populations exposed to ambient pollution. The effects of ozone on pulmonary function in adults and children were evaluated using the model. On the basis of dose of ozone (micrograms O3 per kg body mass), children, aged 8 to 15 years, and adults were equally sensitive. When dose is analyzed as a function of age, the data suggest that children, under the age of 6 years, receive greater doses to respiratory tract tissues than do older children or adults, under equivalent conditions of exposure.