Cardiovascular mortality risk attributable to ambient temperature in China

Area of Science:

• Environmental Health
• Epidemiology
• Cardiovascular Disease Research

Background:

• Ambient temperature variations pose a significant public health challenge, particularly concerning cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality.
• Understanding the differential impact of cold and heat on CVD deaths is crucial for targeted interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantify the burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality attributable to ambient temperature in China.
• To investigate potential effect modification of temperature-related CVD mortality by demographic factors like gender, age, and education level.

Main Methods:

• Utilized daily temperature and CVD mortality data from 15 Chinese megacities (2007-2013).
• Employed quasi-Poisson regression with distributed lag non-linear models to assess temperature-mortality associations.
• Conducted multivariate meta-analysis for national-level estimates and calculated attributable fractions for cold and heat extremes relative to minimum-mortality temperatures (MMTs).

Main Results:

• Ambient temperature was linked to 17.1% of CVD deaths (330,352 total), with significant city-level variations.
• Cold temperatures accounted for the majority of temperature-attributable CVD mortality (15.8%), compared to heat (1.3%).
• The minimum-mortality temperature (MMT) varied across cities, centering nationally around the 78th percentile.

Conclusions:

• Cold ambient temperatures are the predominant factor driving temperature-related cardiovascular disease mortality in China.
• Findings underscore the critical need for public health strategies to mitigate the impact of extreme temperatures on CVD mortality.