Bureau of Environmental Surveillance and Policy, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, 125 Worth Street, CN-34E, New York, NY 10013, USA.
Vital Strategies, 61 Broadway, Suite 2800, New York, NY 10006, USA.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2018 Mar 30;15(4):632. doi: 10.3390/ijerph15040632.
Exposure to cold weather can cause cold-related illness and death, which are preventable. To understand the current burden, risk factors, and circumstances of exposure for illness and death directly attributed to cold, we examined hospital discharge, death certificate, and medical examiner data during the cold season from 2005 to 2014 in New York City (NYC), the largest city in the United States. On average each year, there were 180 treat-and-release emergency department visits (average annual rate of 21.6 per million) and 240 hospital admissions (29.6 per million) for cold-related illness, and 15 cold-related deaths (1.8 per million). Seventy-five percent of decedents were exposed outdoors. About half of those exposed outdoors were homeless or suspected to be homeless. Of the 25% of decedents exposed indoors, none had home heat and nearly all were living in single-family or row homes. The majority of deaths and illnesses occurred outside of periods of extreme cold. Unsheltered homeless individuals, people who use substances and become incapacitated outdoors, and older adults with medical and psychiatric conditions without home heat are most at risk. This information can inform public health prevention strategies and interventions.
暴露于寒冷天气中可能导致与寒冷相关的疾病和死亡，而这些是可以预防的。为了了解与寒冷直接相关的疾病和死亡的当前负担、风险因素和暴露情况，我们在 2005 年至 2014 年的寒冷季节期间检查了纽约市（美国最大的城市）的医院出院、死亡证明和法医数据。平均每年，有 180 次因与寒冷相关的疾病接受治疗和出院的急诊就诊（平均每年每百万人 21.6 次）和 240 次因与寒冷相关的疾病住院（每百万人 29.6 次），以及 15 例与寒冷相关的死亡（每百万人 1.8 次）。75%的死者暴露在户外。大约一半暴露在户外的人无家可归或疑似无家可归。在 25%的死者暴露在室内的情况下，没有一个人有家庭供暖，而且几乎所有人都住在单户或排屋中。大多数死亡和疾病发生在极寒期之外。无家可归者、在户外使用药物而丧失能力的人以及没有家庭供暖的患有医疗和精神疾病的老年人风险最大。这些信息可以为公共卫生预防策略和干预措施提供依据。
