summary: Researchers report that exposure to hot, humid weather can produce mental health symptoms that require emergency care.
Source: Universities in Albany
Exposure to sunlight, hot and humid weather can cause severe symptoms of mental disorders that require emergency care. So reports a recent study led by researchers at the University of Albany, which used data on New York state weather and hospital emergency visits to assess how the characteristics of the summer season affect people with mental disorders. does.
This research was the first to evaluate the combined effects of multiple meteorological factors across all classes of mental disorders designated by the World Health Organization.
These findings, published in Environment InternationalCan inform strategies to improve patient care.
Lead author Shinle Deng, who earned her Ph.D. in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at UAlbany in May, “We know that the weather affects mood. But while a hot, bright day is a boost for some, others may become more easily agitated or angry. For people with mental disorders, changes in several weather factors can provoke symptoms that pose serious health risks.”
“By examining local weather conditions with information on emergency department visits, we found clear trends with increased high heat, humidity and sun exposure leading to psychiatric disorders, particularly psychoactive substance use, mood disorders , in patients suffering from symptoms associated with stress disorder and adult behavior disorder, which may include forms of violence such as pyromania.
“Understanding these connections can help care providers shape interventions to protect patient well-being.”
The statewide analysis included two six-month study periods, focused on the warmer months: May–October, in 2017 and 2018.
The team leveraged meteorological data from the NYS Mesonet – a network operated by Ulbani of 126 weather stations in every county and borough in New York, which records atmospheric and soil conditions at 5-minute intervals. Their study looked at data on temperature, solar radiation, relative humidity, heat index and rainfall.
Emergency department visits due to mental disorders were identified using the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10). Disorders are coded by subtype, which includes categories such as stress-related disorders, intellectual disabilities, and intentional self-harm.
During the study period, 547,540 emergency department visits attributed to mental disorders were recorded in New York State. To link local weather conditions and emergency department visits, each case’s residential address was geocoded and linked with the nearest Masonette station. Information on patient diagnoses and demographics was obtained from the New York Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System, a mandated hospital discharge database covering ~95% of hospitals in the state.
The results showed that the combination of high temperature, solar radiation and relative humidity produced the greatest risk of severe mental disorder symptoms. The effects were strongest in the summer transition months of September and October. The most affected populations include: male, Hispanic and African American individuals, people aged 46-65, Medicaid or Medicare customers, and people without insurance.
Several mental disorder classes were uniquely amenable to some combination of weather conditions. For example, when solar radiation, temperature, heat index and humidity were high, hospitals saw an increase in emergency department visits due to psychoactive substance use (eg, alcohol or opioid use).
Severe symptoms of mood disorders, including depression and bipolar disorder, coincide with low sunlight and high heat.
Shao Lin, senior author of the study and professor at the Yulabani School of Public Health, said: “As extreme heat due to climate change becomes increasingly intense and more frequent, we can expect these changes to have adverse physical effects on people.” can.”
“Individuals with mental disorders are particularly vulnerable to these changes, and our findings suggest that multiple, simultaneous weather stresses may increase health risks. Efforts to improve targeted care should take combined factors into account. should.”
Since mental health symptoms associated with weather can take time to appear, the team noted this delay as “lag days” – the time between the onset of a particular weather condition and the date of hospitalization – measured. They found that high temperatures alone presented the most immediate short-term risk, while the heat index increased risk over a two-week period.
Deng, who is now doing postdoctoral work at the National Institutes of Health, explains, “As we learn more about the ways that weather affects mental health, it is important to put a finer point on the timing of symptom emergence. .
Understanding the effects of lag can help hospital caregivers know when to prepare to receive greater numbers of patients in view of prolonged weather conditions known to exacerbate certain mental disorders. ,
Public health agencies such as the CDC can use these findings to establish early warning systems to prevent violence and syndromes related to mental health. Proactive measures may include facilitating access to cooling centers and encouraging patients with relevant mental disorders to pay attention to heatwaves and sun exposure and seek appropriate shelter.
“Knowing that the months of infection show the highest risk of severe symptoms tells us that early warning systems and related education should begin in May and continue through September-October,” Lin said. “Policy makers can plan preparedness efforts using health risk thresholds associated with weather factors.”
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“Weather and climate have a profound effect on health – from severe and dangerous weather to direct allergies and more indirect effects from mental health,” said Jerry Brotz, a co-author of the paper and longtime program manager for New York State Masonate. Recently hired as the state meteorologist in his home state of Kentucky.
“Recent advances in weather observations collected at the high temporal and spatial scales recorded by mesonets have the potential to revolutionize our understanding of how climate change induces changes in health. understood, we can more effectively meet the needs of patients.”
About this climate change and mental health research news
Author: Press Office
Source: Universities in Albany
contact: Press Office – University at Albany
image: Image is in public domain
Basic Research: open access.
“Identifying the combined effects of sun irradiance, temperature, humidity and duration of rainfall on triggering psychotic disorders using a high-resolution weather monitoring system” by Xinlei Deng et al. Environment International
essence
Identifying the combined effects of sun radiation, temperature, humidity and rainfall duration on triggering psychotic disorders using a high-resolution weather monitoring system
background
Mental disorders (MDs) are behavioral or mental patterns that cause significant distress or impairment in individual functioning. Previously, temperature has been linked to MD, but most studies encountered risk aberrations due to limited monitoring sites. We aimed to assess whether multiple meteorological factors could be combined to trigger MD-related emergency department (ED) visits in hot weather, using an extremely dense weather monitoring system.
methods
We conducted a time-stratified, case-crossover study. MD-related ED visits (primary diagnoses) from May–October 2017–2018 were obtained from the New York State (NYS) discharge database. We obtained solar radiation (SR), relative humidity (RH), temperature, heat index (HI), and precipitation from Mesonet, a real-time monitoring system approximately 17 miles (126 stations) across the NYS. We used conditional logistic regression to assess weather–MD associations.
Result
For each interquartile range (IQR) increase, both SR (excess risk (ER): 4.9%, 95% CI: 3.2–6.7%) and RH (ER: 4.0%, 95% CI: 2.6–5.4%) showed the most showed greater risk for MD-related ED attacks at intervals of 0-9 days. Whereas temperature presented a short-term risk (highest ER interval at 0–2 days: 3.7%, 95% CI: 2.5–4.9%), HI increased risk over a two-week period (ER range: 3.7–4.5%). ), and rain hours showed an inverse relationship with MD (ER: −0.5%, 95% CI: 0.9-(-0.1)%). Additionally, we observed a strong association of SR, RH, temperature and HI in September and October. The combination of higher SR, RH and temperature displayed the greatest increase in MD (ER: 7.49%, 95% CI: 3.95–11.15%). The Met-MD association was stronger for psychoactive substance use, mood disorders, adult behavioral disorders, men, Hispanics, African Americans, individuals aged 46–65, or Medicare patients.
conclusion
The combined effect of hot and humid weather, particularly high sun irradiance, temperature and relative humidity, showed the highest risk of MD diseases. We found strong season-MD associations in the transitional months of summer, males and minority groups. These findings also need further confirmation.
(This story has not been edited by seemayo staff and is published from a rss feed)