Aikman H
Department of Nursing, La Trobe University, Bendigo, Victoria, Australia.
Int J Biometeorol. 1997 Jun;40(4):192-9. doi: 10.1007/s004840050041.
Despite the prevasiveness of the idea that arthritis is influenced by the weather, scientific evidence on the matter is sparse and non-conclusive. This study, conducted in the Australian inland city of Bendigo, sought to establish a possible relationship between the pain and rigidity of arthritis and the weather variables of temperature, relative humidity, barometric pressure, wind speed and precipitation. Pain and rigidity levels were scored by 25 participants with osteoarthritis and/or rheumatoid arthritis four times per day for 1 month from each season. Mean pain and rigidity scores for each time of each day were found to be correlated with the meteorological data. Correlations between mean symptoms and temperature and relative humidity were significant (P < 0.001). Time of day was included in the analysis. Stepwise multiple regression analysis indicated that meteorological variables and time of day accounted for 38% of the variance in mean pain and 20% of the variance in mean rigidity when data of all months were considered. A post-study telephone questionnaire indicated 92% of participants perceived their symptoms to be influenced by the weather, while 48% claimed to be able to predict the weather according to their symptoms. Hence, the results suggest (1) decreased temperature is associated with both increased pain and increased rigidity and (2) increased relative humidity is associated with increased pain and rigidity in arthritis sufferers.
尽管普遍认为关节炎受天气影响，但关于这一问题的科学证据稀少且无定论。这项在澳大利亚内陆城市本迪戈进行的研究，旨在确定关节炎的疼痛和僵硬程度与温度、相对湿度、气压、风速和降水量等天气变量之间是否存在可能的关系。25名骨关节炎和/或类风湿性关节炎患者在每个季节的1个月时间里，每天4次对疼痛和僵硬程度进行评分。发现每天各时段的平均疼痛和僵硬评分与气象数据相关。平均症状与温度和相对湿度之间的相关性显著（P < 0.001）。分析中纳入了一天中的时间。逐步多元回归分析表明，当考虑所有月份的数据时，气象变量和一天中的时间占平均疼痛方差的38%，占平均僵硬方差的20%。一项研究后的电话调查问卷显示，92%的参与者认为他们的症状受天气影响，而48%的人声称能够根据自己的症状预测天气。因此，研究结果表明：（1）温度降低与疼痛加剧和僵硬加剧均相关；（2）相对湿度增加与关节炎患者的疼痛加剧和僵硬加剧相关。
