The Impact of Heat on Selected Reasons for Seeking Emergency Care in Metropolitan France During the Summers of 2015–2017
Every summer, Santé publique France monitors the impact of heat on the use of emergency care services by analyzing emergency department visits and SOS Médecins consultations for heat-related illnesses (HRI). The objective of this study is to propose the inclusion of additional indicators to be tracked as part of this monitoring. Four indicators likely to be influenced by heat were selected based on a literature review and interviews with specialized epidemiologists: isolated fever, malaise, digestive disorders, and rhabdomyolysis. The influence of heat intensity on these conditions, as well as on heat-related illnesses, was explored across all metropolitan departments during the summers of 2015, 2016, and 2017. The results show a more or less significant increase in the risk of seeking medical care for all proposed indicators and across all age groups, with relative risks (RR) of seeking medical care ranging from 1 to 5 under an orange alert (compared to a green alert). A growing relationship between intensity and healthcare utilization is also observed, with a maximum RR of 13.88 [95% CI: 13.74–14.01] for SOS Médecins consultations for acute respiratory infections during extreme intensity (compared to low intensity). Indicators for digestive disorders, isolated fever, and malaise could be added to those already monitored as part of the surveillance system to better represent the diversity of expected health impacts.
Author(s): Atiki Nahida, Pascal Mathilde, Wagner Vérène
Publishing year: 2019
Pages: 9-14
Weekly Epidemiological Bulletin, 2019, n° 1, p. 9-14
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