Pain intensity and barometric pressure closely correlate in Southern Taiwan.

BACKGROUND

Previous reports suggest that weather changes may affect the attack and pattern of pain. However, a direct relationship between weather and pain attack is yet to be determined, especially when very limited data are currently available in the tropical or subtropical regions.

METHODS

We studied the patients who visited our clinic for pain management in Tainan, a city in southern Taiwan, in the space from February 2004 to December 2005. Intensity of pain measured by visual analogue scale (VAS) and the weather conditions including temperature, barometric pressure, humidity and wind speed at the time of measurement, were recorded.

RESULTS

Our results indicate that higher scores of the VAS were associated with older age and lower barometric pressure, while the associations with temperature, humidity and wind speed were not statistically significant.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results demonstrate a unique pattern of pain, which varies with barometric pressure, in the subtropical region and may provide reference for better pain intervention during change of weather.