Associations between anthropogenic factors, meteorological factors, and cause-specific emergency department admissions

Abstract

Unpredictable emergency department (ED) admissions challenge healthcare systems, causing resource allocation inefficiencies. This study analyses associations between air pollutants, meteorological factors, and 2,655,861 cause-specific ED admissions from 2014 to 2018 across 12 categories. Generalized additive models were used to assess non-linear associations for each exposure, yielding Incidence Rate Ratios (IRR), while the population attributable fraction (PAF) calculated each exposure's contribution to cause-specific ED admissions. IRRs revealed increased risks of ED admissions for respiratory infections (IRR: 1.06, 95% CI: 1.01-1.11) and infectious and parasitic diseases (IRR: 1.09, 95% CI: 1.03-1.15) during increased rainfall (13.21-16.97 mm). Wind speeds >12.73 km/hr corresponded to increased risks of ED admissions for respiratory infections (IRR: 1.12, 95% CI: 1.03-1.21) and oral diseases (IRR: 1.58, 95% CI: 1.31-1.91). Higher concentrations of air pollutants were associated with elevated risks of cardiovascular disease (IRR: 1.16, 95% CI: 1.05-1.27 for PM10) and respiratory infection-related ED admissions (IRR: 2.78, 95% CI: 1.69-4.56 for CO). Wind speeds >12.5 km/hr were predicted to contribute toward 10% of respiratory infection ED admissions, while mean temperatures >28°C corresponded to increases in the PAF up to 5% for genitourinary disorders and digestive diseases. PM10 concentrations >60 μg/m3 were highly attributable toward cardiovascular disease (PAF: 10%), digestive disease (PAF: 15%) and musculoskeletal disease (PAF: 10%) ED admissions. CO concentrations >0.6 ppm were highly attributable to respiratory infections (PAF: 20%) and diabetes mellitus (PAF: 20%) ED admissions. This study underscores protective effects of meteorological variables and deleterious impacts of air pollutant exposures across the ED admission categories considered.