Presentation Rates for Acute Pharyngitis in the Emergency Room Are Influenced by Extreme Weather Events

Abstract

ObjectiveExtreme weather events are becoming more prevalent with the increasing pace of climate change. These events negatively impact human health and put considerable strain on health care resources, including emergency departments. Within otolaryngology, acute pharyngitis is a common reason for emergency room visits (ERV). Therefore, we aimed to investigate the impact of extreme meteorological conditions on ERV rates related to acute pharyngitis.Study DesignRetrospective time‐series study.SettingERVs related to acute pharyngitis (n = 1511) were identified at a tertiary care hospital in Vienna, Austria, between 2015 and 2018.MethodsThe effects of single‐day and prolonged (3‐day) extreme weather events on ERVs were analyzed using a distributed lag nonlinear model. Relative risk (RR) and cumulative relative risk (cRR) were calculated over a lag period of 14 days. RR refers to the risk for pharyngitis‐related ERV at extreme conditions (1st, 5th, 95th, or 99th percentile) compared to the risk at median conditions.ResultsSame‐day RR (lag0) was elevated more than 3‐fold after prolonged extremely low mean temperatures (P = .028). Furthermore, same‐day RR after single‐day and prolonged extremely high relative humidity was elevated by 51% (P = .024) and 46% (P = .036), respectively. Significant delayed effects on cRR were observed for extreme mean temperatures, relative humidity, and mean wind speeds within 8 days and for extreme atmospheric pressure within 14 days.ConclusionExtreme weather events impact ERV rates for acute pharyngitis. Extremely low temperatures, high relative humidity, high atmospheric pressure, and low and high wind speeds were risk‐promoting factors.