Fowler Teresa E, Bloomquist Ryan F, James Jeffrey N
Department of Ophthalmology, Augusta University, Augusta, 30912, USA.
University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Columbia, SC, 29209, USA.
BMC Oral Health. 2025 Aug 12;25(1):1322. doi: 10.1186/s12903-025-06621-y.
The incidence of fascial space infections of the head and neck has long been suggested to correlate with weather patterns, though objective evidence is inconsistent, and a causative effect is difficult to prove. One issue in the existing literature is that correlations between space infections and weather patterns have been assessed in only a few climates, so data from additional regions is needed. The purpose of this study is to understand whether head and neck infection rates correlate with weather patterns in a humid subtropical climate, adding to the current literature derived largely from temperate environments.
In this retrospective observational study, we investigate potential associations between weather variables and fascial space infections of the head and neck treated by oral and maxillofacial surgery (OMFS) at Augusta University Medical Center, an urban tertiary care center in the Southeastern United States, over a 7-year period. The study sample included all patients presenting between October 2012 and September 2019 for head and neck infections identified by ICD10 code. Those with pre-existing oral or maxillofacial disease, including recent infection, were excluded. Daily weather reports from this period were obtained from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration online database. The primary outcome variable, "infection rate" was stratified according to the day, month, year, and season of diagnosis. Spearman correlation coefficients were calculated for infection rate with each weather variable in each time grouping, with needle plots constructed to visualize trends. Statistical significance was determined with p-value < 0.05.
199 patients were included. Only when infection rates were stratified by year did Spearman correlations reach statistical significance. Correlations that reached statistical significance included daily departure from normal average temperature, cooling degree days, daily maximum dry bulb temperature, average dry bulb temperature, average wet bulb temperature, and daily minimum dry bulb temperature. Using the null hypothesis that there was no correlation between weather variables and infection rates, all other correlation coefficients failed to reach statistical significance.
The results of this study do not support an association between weather and head and neck fascial space infections in the southeastern United States.
长期以来，一直有人认为头颈部筋膜间隙感染的发生率与天气模式相关，尽管客观证据并不一致，且因果关系难以证明。现有文献中的一个问题是，仅在少数几种气候条件下评估了间隙感染与天气模式之间的相关性，因此需要来自其他地区的数据。本研究的目的是了解在湿润亚热带气候中，头颈部感染率是否与天气模式相关，从而为目前主要来自温带环境的文献增添内容。
在这项回顾性观察研究中，我们调查了美国东南部城市三级医疗中心奥古斯塔大学医学中心在7年期间，天气变量与接受口腔颌面外科（OMFS）治疗的头颈部筋膜间隙感染之间的潜在关联。研究样本包括2012年10月至2019年9月期间，因ICD10编码确诊为头颈部感染而就诊的所有患者。排除患有口腔或颌面疾病（包括近期感染）的患者。这一时期的每日天气报告来自美国国家海洋和大气管理局在线数据库。主要结局变量“感染率”根据诊断的日期、月份、年份和季节进行分层。计算每个时间分组中感染率与每个天气变量的Spearman相关系数，并绘制针状图以直观显示趋势。以p值<0.05确定统计学显著性。
纳入199例患者。仅当感染率按年份分层时，Spearman相关性才达到统计学显著性。达到统计学显著性的相关性包括每日与正常平均温度的偏差、冷却度日、每日最高干球温度、平均干球温度、平均湿球温度和每日最低干球温度。在天气变量与感染率之间不存在相关性的零假设下，所有其他相关系数均未达到统计学显著性。
本研究结果不支持美国东南部天气与头颈部筋膜间隙感染之间存在关联。
