BioMed Central Blog
Too hot to handle – the effect of temperature on mortality
An article published this week in Environmental Health provides a current review of the epidemiological literature on the effect of temperature on mortality.
Epidemiological studies of temperature and heat-related
mortality have been receiving increased attention recently. Identifying risk
factors and potentially susceptible populations are becoming increasingly
important for public health interventions as temperatures are predicted to rise
worldwide due to climate change.
Previous reviews on temperature and heat-related mortality have focused on methodology and climatology, largely ignoring epidemiological studies on this topic. The review by Dr Rupa Basu provides a timely overview of epidemiology studies examining the effect of temperature on mortality.
Review
High ambient temperature and mortality: a review of epidemiologic studies from
2001 to 2008
Rupa Basu
Environmental Health 2009, 8:40 (16 September 2009)
In her review, Dr Basu includes two sections on the most relevant new topics in the area, the confounding effects of air pollution on heat-related mortality and the identification of subgroups particularly vulnerable to the effects of heat. These aspects of temperature and mortality will be important areas for future research in the field.
Environmental Health publishes articles on all aspects of environmental and occupational medicine and related studies in toxicology and epidemiology. To access the latest articles published in the journal, please click here.
Posted by Anne Braae at 13:24 Comments (0)
