by A recent study conducted by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) has revealed that the risk of dying in the hospital due to respiratory causes is higher during the summer months than during the winter. The study, published in The Lancet Regional Health—Europe, suggests that global warming caused by climate change could worsen the burden of inpatient mortality from respiratory diseases in the warm season. These findings could potentially help health facilities adapt to the effects of climate change.
The research team focused on analyzing the connection between ambient temperature and in-hospital mortality from respiratory diseases in the provinces of Madrid and Barcelona, using data from the years 2006 to 2019. In both locations, hospital admissions, including those resulting in death, were found to be higher during the cold season and lower during the warm season, with the highest number of admissions occurring in January and the lowest in August.
Interestingly, while hospital admissions were more common in the cold season, the study found that the highest incidence of inpatient mortality occurred during the summer and was strongly associated with high temperatures.
To determine the relationship between ambient temperature and hospital mortality, the researchers utilized data on daily hospital admissions, weather conditions (temperature and relative humidity), and air pollutants (O3, PM2.5, PM10, and NO2).
While it is well-established that exposure to extreme temperatures increases the risk of hospital admissions for respiratory diseases like pneumonia, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and asthma, this study is the first to specifically examine the proportion of hospital admissions resulting in death, indicating the more severe cases.
The study revealed that summer temperatures accounted for 16% and 22.1% of fatal hospitalizations from respiratory diseases in Madrid and Barcelona, respectively. Moreover, the impact of heat was immediate, with the majority of the effect occurring within the first three days of exposure to high temperatures.
This suggests that the increase in acute respiratory outcomes during heat is primarily due to the worsening of chronic and infectious respiratory diseases, rather than the spread of new respiratory infections that typically take several days to manifest symptoms.
The study also found a higher risk of mortality from acute bronchitis and bronchiolitis, pneumonia, and respiratory failure during periods of high temperature. Interestingly, neither relative humidity nor air pollutants played a significant role in the association between heat and mortality in patients admitted for respiratory diseases. Furthermore, the research indicated that women may be more vulnerable to heat-related mortality than men, possibly due to physiological differences in thermoregulation.
The findings of this study have important implications for healthcare institutions in adapting to climate change. The researchers suggest that health services may be better prepared to handle the winter peaks in respiratory diseases. However, without effective adaptation measures in place, climate warming could exacerbate the burden of inpatient mortality from respiratory diseases during the warmer months.
According to Hicham Achebak, the first author of the study and a researcher at Inserm and ISGlobal, it is crucial to implement strategies to mitigate the impact of climate change on human health in hospital facilities. Failure to do so could result in increased mortality rates from respiratory diseases during periods of high temperature.
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1. Source: Coherent Market Insights, Public sources, Desk research
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