Urban Environmental Challenges and Health: Environmental Determinants of Respiratory Illnesses in Samarkand
Abstract
Rapid urban development and changing environmental conditions increasingly challenge public health in historic cities such as Samarkand, Uzbekistan. In recent years, respiratory illnesses have risen in the region, raising concerns about the role of environmental factors, particularly air quality. This study examines the influence of atmospheric dust and ambient temperature on asthma and other respiratory illnesses in Samarkand using monthly data from 2022–2023. The analysis applies regression-based time series technique, namely distributed lag model to capture both immediate and delayed environmental effects. The results show that short-term fluctuations in dust and temperature do not significantly affect asthma incidence. However, the distributed lag analysis suggests that atmospheric dust contributes to broader respiratory morbidity when delayed effects are considered, indicating that pollution-related health impacts may develop gradually over time. Temperature variations did not show a meaningful association with respiratory diseases. These findings emphasize the importance of strengthening air-quality monitoring, pollution mitigation strategies, and environmental health management in Samarkand.