Attributable risks of hospitalizations for urologic diseases due to heat exposure in Queensland, Australia, 1995–2016

Abstract

Background Heat exposure is a risk factor for urologic diseases. However, there are limited existing studies that have examined the relationship between high temperatures and urologic disease. The aim of this study was to examine the associations between heat exposure and hospitalizations for urologic diseases in Queensland, Australia, during the hot seasons of 1995–2016 and to quantify the attributable risks. Methods We obtained 238 427 hospitalized cases with urologic diseases from Queensland Health between 1 December 1995 and 31 December 2016. Meteorological data were collected from the Scientific Information for Land Owners—a publicly accessible database of Australian climate data that provides daily data sets for a range of climate variables. A time-stratified, case-crossover design fitted with the conditional quasi-Poisson regression model was used to estimate the associations between temperature and hospitalizations for urologic diseases at the postcode level during each hot season (December–March). Attributable rates of hospitalizations for urologic disease due to heat exposure were calculated. Stratified analyses were performed by age, sex, climate zone, socio-economic factors and cause-specific urologic diseases. Results We found that a 1°C increase in temperature was associated with a 3.3% [95% confidence interval (CI): 2.9%, 3.7%] increase in hospitalization for the selected urologic diseases during the hot season. Hospitalizations for renal failure showed the strongest increase 5.88% (95% CI: 5.25%, 6.51%) among the specific causes of hospital admissions considered. Males and the elderly (≥60 years old) showed stronger associations with heat exposure than females and younger groups. The sex- and age-specific associations with heat exposure were similar across specific causes of urologic diseases. Overall, nearly one-fifth of hospitalizations for urologic diseases were attributable to heat exposure in Queensland. Conclusions Heat exposure is associated with increased hospitalizations for urologic disease in Queensland during the hot season. This finding reinforces the pressing need for dedicated public health-promotion campaigns that target susceptible populations, especially for those more predisposed to renal failure. Given that short-term climate projections identify an increase in the frequency, duration and intensity of heatwaves, this public health advisory will be of increasing urgency in coming years.

The impact of extreme heat on older regional and rural Australians: A systematic review

“…Two authors were contacted for additional data not published in the original article. One paper could not share additional data due to Queensland Health not permitting data sharing and hence was excluded 26 . Another paper did not have data for each age category according to rurality and was excluded 12 .…”

Association between ambient temperature and genitourinary emergency ambulance dispatches in Japan: A nationwide case-crossover study

“…40 Our subgroup analysis results have some consistencies and inconsistencies with previous studies as well-for example, our findings that men and younger populations are at a higher risk of genitourinary conditions were not quite the same as a previous study in Queensland, Australia that concluded that men and elderly are more vulnerable to heat effects causing genitourinary diseases. 41 While the reason behind this difference remains unclear, it may suggest that the elderly population in Japan has better protection against heat, whether it be through preventative healthcare measures, genetics, or living environments; alternatively, this difference may indicate that the younger population in Japan has a different mobility pattern compared with that in Australia that puts them at an increased risk of exposure. Furthermore, our results differ from another study in South Korea that found that cold spells are associated with hospital admission and mortality due to AKI, especially in the elderly population.…”

Clinical Characteristics and Factors Associated with In-Hospital Mortality in 66 755 Patients Hospitalized Due to Diabetes in Poland, January to December 2019

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“…Among patients hospitalized due to type 2 diabetes, the highest in-hospital mortality rate was observed in January and February. We can hypothesize that the weather, air pollution, and limited psychical activity level during winter can increase the risk of in-hospital mortality among patients with type 2 diabetes [ 30 , 31 ].…”