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. 2024 Feb 24;16(2):e54833.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.54833. eCollection 2024 Feb.

Impact of Temperature and Atmospheric Pressure on Hospitalizations of Patients Presenting With Acute Coronary Syndrome

Naltin Shuka  1 , Andri Cabeli  2 , Leonard Simoni  3 , Mirald Gina  3 , Ledjana Kondi  3 , Edvin Dado  4
Affiliations

Impact of Temperature and Atmospheric Pressure on Hospitalizations of Patients Presenting With Acute Coronary Syndrome

Naltin Shuka et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Aim: This study aims to investigate the impact of temperature and atmospheric pressure on hospitalizations of patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS).

Materials and methods: This is a retrospective, observational, analytical study conducted in a single center, University Hospital Center "Mother Teresa," Tirana, Albania, in the period January-December 2018. This study included 1,165 patients with ACS, who performed urgent coronary angiography, from January 2018 to December 2018. Patients were diagnosed with ACS based on clinical and examination findings. The data were collected retrospectively using patient files. Baseline demographic, clinical, and procedural characteristics were collected. Data on atmospheric parameters, measured at the weather monitoring station, were obtained from the National Meteorological Service database. Measurements from the meteorological service provided values ​​for each parameter: average daily temperature and atmospheric pressure in each country district. Atmospheric data measurements were taken for the day under review. The number of inhabitants for the respective districts is taken from the National Institute of Statistics (INSTAT).

Results: The study involved 1,165 patients, with a mean age of 63.1 years, ranging from 27 years to 89 years old. The majority of patients (78.6%) were male, while 21.4% were female. A statistically significant relationship was observed between seasonal changes in temperature and atmospheric pressure concerning the number of cases with ACS; the autumn season prevails with 27.9% of the total cases, followed by the spring season with 25.6%, the summer season with 24.2%, and winter season with 22.3% (p = 0.04). Additionally, significant changes in the average monthly values ​​of temperature and atmospheric pressure were accompanied by a statistically significant increase in the number of cases as occurred in March-April and October-November (p ≤ 0.05). Most cases in the cold period (November-March) occurred on days with a change in temperature or atmospheric pressure with a statistically significant value of p < 0.05.

Conclusion: An important relationship between seasonal, monthly, and daily changes in temperature and atmospheric pressure concerning the frequency of cases with ACS was observed.

Keywords: acute coronary syndrome (acs); air temperature; atmospheric pressure; daily changes; season changes.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Distribution of cases by days
Figure 2
Figure 2. Distribution of cases according to diagnosis and months
UA - Unstable angina, NSTEMI - Non-ST elevation myocardial infarction, STEMI - ST elevation myocardial infarction
Figure 3
Figure 3. Cases of ACS by months and changes in temperature and atmospheric pressure
Figure 4
Figure 4. Frequency of ACS by months
Figure 5
Figure 5. Correlation of ACS with the change in temperature and pressure
Figure 6
Figure 6. Monthly number of cases of ACS according to average monthly temperatures
T48h - Temperature 48 hours before the event, T24h - Temperature 24 hours before the event, TDI - Temperature in the event day
Figure 7
Figure 7. Monthly number of cases with ACS according to average monthly atmospheric pressures
Pa48h - Pressure 48 hours before the event, Pa24h - Pressure 24 hours before the event, PaDI - Pressure in event day
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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