Citation

Weinberger KR, Kulick ER, Boehme AK, Sun S, Dominici F, Wellenius GA. Am. J. Epidemiol. 2021; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2021, Oxford University Press)

DOI

10.1093/aje/kwab127

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The magnitude, timing, and etiology of morbidity associated with tropical cyclones remains incompletely quantified. We examined the relative change in cause-specific emergency department (ED) visits among residents of New York City during and after Hurricane Sandy, a tropical cyclone that affected the northeastern United States in October 2012. We used quasi-Poisson constrained distributed lag models to compare the number of ED visits on and after Hurricane Sandy to all other days, 2005-2014, adjusting for temporal trends. Among residents aged ≥ 65 years, Hurricane Sandy was associated with a higher rate of ED visits due to injuries and poisoning (RR: 1.19, [95% CI: 1.10, 1.28]), respiratory disease (1.35, [1.21, 1.49]), cardiovascular disease (1.10, [1.02, 1.19]), renal disease (1.44, [1.22, 1.72]), and skin and soft tissue infections (1.20, [1.03, 1.39]) in the first week following the storm. Among adults aged 18-64 years, Hurricane Sandy was associated with a higher rate of ED visits for renal disease (2.15, [1.79, 2.59]). Among those aged 0-17, the storm was associated with lower rates of ED visits for up to three weeks. These results suggest that tropical cyclones may result in increased healthcare utilization due to a wide range of causes, particularly among older adults.

Language: en

Keywords

Morbidity; Cyclonic Storms; Emergency Service, Hospital; New York City