Impact of diurnal temperature range on hospital admissions for cerebrovascular disease among farmers in Northwest China

The effects of temperature variability on ischemic heart disease mortality in Hangzhou, China

Ischemic heart disease (IHD) is a leading cause of death in cardiovascular patients. In China, the disease burden of IHD deaths has significantly increased. One of the main influencing factors of IHD is changing climates, and temperature and diurnal temperature range (DTR) are important indicators of climate change. In this study, we aimed to assess the associations of temperature variability on IHD mortality in a fast developing city Hangzhou,China. We obtained daily IHD mortality data and meteorological data from mortality surveillance system from 2014 to 2016. Quasi-Poisson generalized linear regression with a distributed lag non-linear model (DLNM) was applied to estimate the associations between temperature variability and IHD deaths. Potential confounders were controlled in the analysis, including relative humidity, day of the week, public holidays, and long-term trends. A total of 7423 IHD mortality data were included in this study. A J-shaped pattern of DTR and a reversely J-shaped pattern of temperature for IHD mortality were observed. Risk estimates showed that the relative risks (RRs) of IHD mortality with extreme high DTR at lag 0-7 days were 1.309 (95% CI: 0.985, 1.740) while RRs of IHD mortality with extreme low DTR at lag 0-2 days were 1.234 (95% CI: 1.043, 1.460). For extreme hot temperature, the highest RRs at lag 0-2 days were 1.559 (95% CI: 1.250, 1.943); for extremely cold temperatures, the RRs increased from 1.049 (95% CI: 0.930, 1.183) to 2.089 (95% CI: 1.854, 2.352). In Hangzhou city, short-term exposure to extreme temperature was associated with mortality for IHD. These findings have implications for policy decision-making and targeted interventions.

Cardiovascular admission risk attributable to hot apparent temperature: a study in a rural area of northwest China

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of mortality worldwide, posing a significant threat to public health. Research on the relationship between CVD and temperature has primarily focused on developed urban settings, with limited studies conducted in rural regions with lower levels of development. Additionally, compared to relative risks, attributable risks can provide more information when assessing the risk of CVD hospitalizations associated with exposure to apparent temperature (AT). Apparent temperature is a composite temperature index that takes into account both meteorological factors and temperature, providing an objective reflection of human thermal sensation. Therefore, this study investigates the impact of AT on CVD hospitalization and quantifies the burden of CVD admission in the rural areas of China. We employed the distributed lag non-linear model (DLNM) to estimate the relationship between AT and the relative risk (RR) of CVD hospitalization. Finally, we used attributable risk methods to quantify this relationship further.

A scoping review of the impact of extreme weather events on health outcomes and healthcare utilization in rural and remote areas

BACKGROUND

Extreme weather events affect health by directly and indirectly increasing illness burdens and changing healthcare usage patterns. These effects can be especially severe in rural and remote areas, exacerbating existing health disparities, and necessitating urgent mitigation or adaptation strategies. Despite increased research on health and climate change, studies focusing on rural and remote populations remain limited. This study aimed to review the relationships among extreme weather events, healthcare utilization, and health outcomes in rural and remote populations, identify research gaps, and inform policy development for adaptation and disaster management in these settings.

METHODS

A systematic scoping review was registered and conducted following the PRISMA-ScR guidelines. The search databases included PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, the Cochrane Library, ProQuest, and the WHO IRIS. The included studies were primary research, focused on rural or remote areas, and investigated the effects of extreme weather events on either health outcomes or healthcare utilization. There were no methodological, date or language restrictions. We excluded protocols, reviews, letters, editorials, and commentaries. Two reviewers screened and extracted all data, other reviewers were invited to resolve conflicts. Findings are presented numerically or narratively as appropriate.

RESULTS

The review included 135 studies from 31 countries, with most from high-income countries. Extreme weather events exacerbate communicable and noncommunicable diseases, including cardiorespiratory, mental health, and malnutrition, and lead to secondary impacts such as mass migration and increased poverty. Healthcare utilization patterns changed during these events, with increased demand for emergency services but reduced access to routine care due to disrupted services and financial constraints.

CONCLUSIONS

The results highlighted the essential role of community and social support in rural and remote areas during extreme weather events and the importance of primary healthcare services in disaster management. Future research should focus on developing and implementing effective mitigation and adaptation programs tailored to the unique challenges faced by these populations.

Diurnal temperature range and hypertension: cross-sectional and longitudinal findings from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS)

BACKGROUND

Research indicates a positive association between short-term diurnal temperature range (DTR) exposure and hypertension. However, the impact of long-term DTR exposure has not been thoroughly studied in population-based cohort research.

METHODS

This study conducted cross-sectional (including 16,690 participants) and longitudinal analyses (including 9,650 participants) based on the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS). Daily temperature data was sourced from the National Scientific Data of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. We calculated the moving average of DTR exposure of all the participants in CHARLS with exposure windows of 30-day, 60-day, 180-day, 1-year, and 2-year before the interview month of CHARLS Wave1 (2011). Logistic regression and age-stratified Cox proportional hazards models were employed in our analysis.

RESULTS

In the cross-sectional study, 6,572 (39.4%) participants had hypertension. We found higher DTR is associated with a higher prevalence of hypertension across different exposure windows. The effect was strongest when the exposure window of DTR was 180-day, with an adjusted odds ratio (OR) of 1.261 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.124-1.416 [highest tertile DTR vs. lowest tertile DTR]). In the cohort study, 3,020 (31.3%) participants developed hypertension during 83 months of follow-up. A higher level of DTR (hazard ratio (HR): 1.224, 95% CI: 1.077-1.391) was associated with a higher risk of incident hypertension. We found significant interactions between DTR and age (P interaction: <0.001) and residence (P interaction: 0.045).

CONCLUSION

We found significant positive associations between DTR and prevalent and incident hypertension. Individuals younger than 65 and those living in rural areas are at an elevated risk of developing hypertension due to DTR.

Association between ambient temperature, PM2.5 and tuberculosis in Northwest China

   Existing evidence suggested that the risk of tuberculosis (TB) infection was associated to the variations in temperature and PM2.5. A total of 9,111 cases of TB were reported in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China from 2013 to 2015 on a daily basis, and 57.2% of them were male. The TB risk was more prominent for a lower temperature in males (RR of 1.724, 95% CI: 1.241, 2.394), the aged over 64 years (RR of 2.241, 95% CI: 1.554, 3.231), and the high mobility occupation subpopulation (RR of 2.758, 95% CI: 1.745, 4.359). High concentration of PM2.5 showed a short-term effect and was only associated with an increased risk in the early stages of exposure for the female, and aged 36-64 years group. There were 15.06% (1370 cases) of cases of TB may be attributable to the temperature, and 2.94% (268 cases) may be attributable to the increase of PM2.5 exposures. Low temperatures may be associated with significantly increase in the risk of TB, and high PM2.5 concentrations have a short-term association on increasing the risk of TB. Strengthening the monitoring and regular prevention and control of high risk groups will provide scientific guidance to reduce the incidence of TB.

Occupational Risk Factors for Stroke: A Comprehensive Review

For primary prevention, it is important for public health and clinical medicine to identify and characterize modifiable risk factors of stroke. In existing literature, the impact of occupational variables on ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke has been extensively studied. This review summarizes the available data on the significance of occupational variables in stroke. The results of this review suggest that there is sufficient evidence for the relationship between increased risk of stroke and job stress, working in extreme temperatures, long working hours, and/or shift work. The association between long working hours and occupational exposure to noise and chemicals remains inconclusive although several studies have reported this finding. This review will act as a step toward future research and provide information that may serve as a baseline for developing targeted interventions to prevent stroke in the working population.

Hospital admission tendencies caused by day-to-day temperature changes during summer: a case study for the city of Novi Sad (Serbia)

Increased temperature risk in cities threatens the health and well-being of urban population and is fueled by climate change and intensive urbanization. Consequently, further steps must be taken for assessing temperature conditions in cities and their association with public health, in order to improve public health prevention at local or regional level. This study contributes to solving the problems by analyzing the connection between extreme temperatures and the tendencies of all-cause hospital admissions. The analyses used (a) 1-h air temperature data, and (b) daily data of all-cause hospital admissions. The datasets include the summer period (June, July, August) for the years 2016 and 2017. We tested the effects of two temperature indices, day-to-day change in maximum temperature - T_max,c and daily temperature range - T_r, with all-cause hospital admission subgroups, such as all-cause cases - H_a, hospital admissions in the population below 65 - H_a<65, and hospital admissions in the population aged 65 and over - H_a≥65. The results show the highest values of H_a when T_max,c is between 6 and 10 °C. Therefore, more intensive hospital admissions can be expected when T_max increases from day-to-day (positive values of T_max,c), and it is more visible for H_a and H_a<65 (1 °C = 1% increase in hospital admissions). Also, T_r values between 10 °C and 14 °C cause an increase in the number of hospital admissions, and it is more noticeable for H_a≥65.

Diurnal temperature range and hospital admission due to cardiovascular and respiratory diseases in Dezful, a city with hot climate and high DTR fluctuation in Iran: an ecological time-series study

The results of previous studies have indicated the effects of temperature changes on health status. The present study was conducted to investigate the effects of diurnal temperature range (DTR) and hospital admission on cardiovascular and respiratory diseases in Dezful, in Iran. In this ecological time-series study, data related to hospital admissions based on ICD-10, meteorological, and climatological data were gathered over a period of six years from 2014 to 2019. A distributed lag nonlinear model combined with a quasi-Poisson regression was then used to assess the impact of DTR on cardiovascular and respiratory hospital admissions. Potential confounders, including wind speed, air pollution, seasonality, time trend, weekends and holidays, days of week, and humidity were controlled. In extreme low DTRs, the cumulative effects of cardiovascular admissions significantly increased in total, and in warm and cold seasons (Lag_0-21, P ≤ 0.05). In addition, in extreme high DTRs, the cumulative effects of cardiovascular significantly decreased in total (Lag_0-13 and Lag_0-21, P ≤ 0.05), and in warm (Lag_0-21, P ≤ 0.05) and cold seasons (Lag_0-21, P ≤ 0.05). Moreover, respiratory admissions significantly decreased in total (Lag_0-21, P ≤ 0.05) and in warm season (Lag_0-21, P ≤ 0.05).Our result indicates that extreme low DTRs could increase the risk of daily cardiovascular admissions, and extreme high DTRs may cause a protective effect on daily respiratory and cardiovascular admissions in some regions with high fluctuations in DTR.