Long-term exposure to airborne particles and arterial stiffness: 
The multi-ethnic study of atherosclerosis (MESA)

Increased arterial stiffness could represent an intermediate subclinical outcome in the mechanistic pathway underlying associations between average long-term pollution exposure and cardiovascular events. The authors hypothesized that 20 years of exposure to particulate matter (PM) ≤ 2.5 and 10 μm in aerodynamic diameter (PM2.5 and PM10, respectively) would be positively associated with arterial stiffness in 3,996 participants from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) who were seen at six U.S. study sites.