Trends in asthma visits to accident and emergency centres in Trinidad during 1997 and associations with climate variables

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: To describe trends in asthma visits to Accident and Emergency (A&E) facilities during 1997 and to examine their associations with climatic conditions. DESIGN AND METHODS: A census of patients with asthma, defined as those who required brochodilator nebulization, was taken at five A&E facilities in Trinidad. Data on patients' age, gender and date of visit were obtained from the A&E records and, climate variables, including rainfall, temperature, relative humidity, and wind speed, were obtained from the Meteorological Office. RESULTS: There was a total of 27,848 asthma visits to the five facilities during 1997, of which the paediatric population(<16 years) accounted for 43 percent. There were steady increases in adult and elderly visits from January to December. A sharp increase in paediatric visits was observed in September, which coincided with the start of the school year. The results of multiple regression analysis indicated that paediatric visits to the A&E were positively associated with temperature and wind speed, while adults' visits were positively associated with temperature and relative humidity. None of the climatic variables predicted asthma visits in the elderly. CONCLUSION: There is a need for further research to explain the increase in paediatric visits at the start of the school year as well as to elucidate the mechanism for the observed associations between climate and asthma visits. (Au)