Hospital admissions as a function of temperature, other weather phenomena and pollution levels in an urban setting in China
- 31 May 2013
- journal article
- Published by WHO Press in Bulletin of the World Health Organization
- Vol. 91 (8), 576-584
- https://doi.org/10.2471/blt.12.113035
Abstract
To explore the relationship between weather phenomena and pollution levels and daily hospital admissions (as an approximation to morbidity patterns) in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), China, in 1998-2009. Generalized additive models and lag models were constructed with data from official sources on hospital admissions and on mean daily temperature, mean daily wind speed, mean relative humidity, daily total global solar radiation, total daily rainfall and daily pollution levels. During the hot season, admissions increased by 4.5% for every increase of 1 °C above 29 °C; during the cold season, admissions increased by 1.4% for every decrease of 1 °C within the 8.2-26.9 °C range. In subgroup analyses, admissions for respiratory and infectious diseases increased during extreme heat and cold, but cardiovascular disease admissions increased only during cold temperatures. For every increase of 1 °C above 29 °C, admissions for unintentional injuries increased by 1.9%. During the cold season, for every decrease of 1 °C within the 8.2-26.9 °C range, admissions for cardiovascular diseases and intentional injuries rose by 2.1% and 2.4%, respectively. Admission patterns were not sensitive to sex. Admissions for respiratory diseases rose during hot and cold temperatures among children but only during cold temperatures among the elderly. In people aged 75 years or older, admissions for infectious diseases rose during both temperature extremes. In Hong Kong SAR, hospitalizations rise during extreme temperatures. Public health interventions should be developed to protect children, the elderly and other vulnerable groups from excessive heat and cold.Keywords
This publication has 32 references indexed in Scilit:
- Effect Modification of the Association between Short-term Meteorological Factors and Mortality by Urban Heat Islands in Hong KongPLOS ONE, 2012
- Help-Seeking Behavior during Elevated Temperature in Chinese PopulationJournal of Urban Health, 2011
- A study of intracity variation of temperature-related mortality and socioeconomic status among the Chinese population in Hong KongJournal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 2010
- Effects of ambient temperature on volume, specialty composition and triage levels of emergency department visitsEmergency Medicine Journal, 2007
- Pattern and determinants of hospitalization during heat waves: an ecologic studyBMC Public Health, 2007
- Effect of meteorological factors on clinical malaria risk among children: an assessment using village-based meteorological stations and community-based parasitological surveyBMC Public Health, 2007
- A time series analysis of the relationship of ambient temperature and common bacterial enteric infections in two Canadian provincesInternational Journal of Biometeorology, 2006
- The west nile virus outbreak in Israel (2000) from a new perspective: The regional impact of climate changeInternational Journal of Environmental Health Research, 2006
- Paris heat wave and oligohydramniosAmerican Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, 2004
- Effects of El Niño and ambient temperature on hospital admissions for diarrhoeal diseases in Peruvian childrenThe Lancet, 2000