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Increased risk of emergency hospital admissions for children with renal diseases during heatwaves in Brisbane, Australia
Xiao-Yu Wang, Adrian Barnett, Yu-Ming Guo, Wei-Wei Yu, Xiao-Ming Shen, Shi-Lu Tong
Shanghai, China
Author Affiliations: School of Public Health and Social Work, Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia (Wang XY, Barnett A, Guo YM, Yu WW, Tong SL); MOE Shanghai Key Laboratory of Environment and Children's Health, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China (Shen XM)
Corresponding Author: Shi-Lu Tong, School of Public Health and Social Work, Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, Queensland University of Technology, Kelvin Grove, QLD 4059, Australia (Tel: +61-7-3138 9745; Fax: +61-7-3138 3369; Email: s.tong@qut.edu.au)
doi: 10.1007/s12519-014-0469-x
Background:Heatwaves have a significant impact on population health including both morbidity and mortality. In this study we examined the association between heatwaves and emergency hospital admissions (EHAs) for renal diseases in children (aged 0-14 years) in Brisbane, Australia.
Methods: Daily data on EHAs for renal diseases in children and exposure to temperature and air pollution were obtained for Brisbane city from January 1, 1996 to December 31, 2005. A time-stratified case-crossover design was used to compare the risks for renal diseases between heatwave and non-heatwave periods.
Results: There were 1565 EHAs for renal diseases in children during the study period. Heatwaves exhibited a significant impact on EHAs for renal diseases in children after adjusting for confounding factors (odds ratio: 3.6; 95% confidence interval: 1.4-9.5). The risk estimates differed with lags and the use of different heatwave definitions.
Conclusions: There was a significant increase in EHAs for renal diseases in children during heatwaves in Brisbane, a subtropical city where people are well accustomed to warm weather. This finding may have significant implications for pediatric renal care, particularly in subtropical and tropical regions.
World J Pediatr 2014;10(4):330-335
Key words: climate change;
environmental health;
hot temperature;
renal diseases
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