Anatomy of Heat Waves and Mortality in Toronto

Pengelly, L. D.; Campbell, Monica; Cheng, Chuntian; Fu, Chaowei; Gingrich, Sarah; Macfarlane, Ronald

doi:10.1007/bf03405420

Cited by 48 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 9 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Many of these events have been associated with excess mortality in urban areas, as documented in the United States (Curriero et al 2002; Kaiser et al 2001; Semenza et al 1996), Europe (Filleul et al 2006; Schifano et al 2009), China (Huang et al 2010), and Russia (Trenberth and Fasullo 2012). Less severe impacts have also been documented in the Canadian cities of Montreal (Smargiassi et al 2009), Toronto (Pengelly et al 2007), and Vancouver (Kosatsky et al 2012), the last being the setting for our study. Cities are at particular risk during extreme hot weather events owing to the urban heat island (UHI) effect, which leads to intra-urban variability in heat exposure (Hart and Sailor 2009; Hawkins et al 2004; Roth et al 1989).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 78%

Delineation of Spatial Variability in the Temperature–Mortality Relationship on Extremely Hot Days in Greater Vancouver, Canada

Knudby

Walker

et al. 2017

Environ Health Perspect

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background:Climate change has increased the frequency and intensity of extremely hot weather. The health risks associated with extemely hot weather are not uniform across affected areas owing to variability in heat exposure and social vulnerability, but these differences are challenging to map with precision.Objectives:We developed a spatially and temporally stratified case-crossover approach for delineation of areas with higher and lower risks of mortality on extremely hot days and applied this approach in greater Vancouver, Canada.Methods:Records of all deaths with an extremely hot day as a case day or a control day were extracted from an administrative vital statistics database spanning the years of 1998–2014. Three heat exposure and 11 social vulnerability variables were assigned at the residential location of each decedent. Conditional logistic regression was used to estimate the odds ratio for a 1°C increase in daily mean temperature at a fixed site with an interaction term for decedents living above and below different values of the spatial variables.Results:The heat exposure and social vulnerability variables with the strongest spatially stratified results were the apparent temperature and the labor nonparticipation rate, respectively. Areas at higher risk had values ≥ 34.4°C for the maximum apparent temperature and ≥ 60% of the population neither employed nor looking for work. These variables were combined in a composite index to quantify their interaction and to enhance visualization of high-risk areas.Conclusions:Our methods provide a data-driven framework for spatial delineation of the temperature-–mortality relationship by heat exposure and social vulnerability. The results can be used to map and target the most vulnerable areas for public health intervention.Citation:Ho HC, Knudby A, Walker BB, Henderson SB. 2017. Delineation of spatial variability in the temperature–mortality relationship on extremely hot days in greater Vancouver, Canada. Environ Health Perspect 125:66–75; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/EHP224

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 78%

Delineation of Spatial Variability in the Temperature–Mortality Relationship on Extremely Hot Days in Greater Vancouver, Canada

Knudby

Walker

et al. 2017

Environ Health Perspect

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Heat is a threat to human health in many parts of the world [1,2]. The Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) points out that climate change is already exacerbating the global burden of disease and premature deaths and the impact of high temperatures is expected to increase in the future [3].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rapid warming in Tibet, China: public perception, response and coping resources in urban Lhasa

et al. 2013

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BackgroundTibet, average altitude more than 4,000 meters, is warming faster than anywhere else in China. The increase in temperatures may aggravate existing health problems and lead to the emergence of new risks. However, there are no actions being taken at present to protect population health due to limited understanding about the range and magnitude of health effects of climate change.MethodsThe study was a cross-sectional survey of 619 respondents from urban Lhasa, Tibet in August 2012 with the aim to investigate public perceptions of risk, heat experiences, and coping resources.ResultsRespondents are aware of the warming that has occurred in Lhasa in recent years. Over 78% reported that rising temperature is either a “very” or “somewhat” serious threat to their own health, and nearly 40% reported they had experienced heat-related symptoms. Sex, age, education and income influenced perceived risks, health status, and heat experience. The vast majority of respondents reported that they had altered their behaviour on hot summer days. Bakuo, a sub-district at the city center, is considered especially vulnerable to heat because of sparse vegetation, high population density, poor dwelling conditions and a high proportion of low-income population. However, neighborhood social ties were stronger in Bakuo than other study locations.ConclusionsThe study suggests that actions are needed now to minimize downside effects of rapid warming in Tibet, because of increasing human exposure to high temperatures and uneven distribution of the resources needed to cope.

show abstract

“…Results vary substantially by region, likely as a result of climatic, infrastructural, and societal differences, so vulnerability factors found to be important elsewhere may not be applicable to Vancouver or other urban areas in Canada. Examples of European and US studies include those by Chestnut et al (), Naughton et al (), Robine et al (), Anderson and Bell (), García‐Herrera et al (), and Alcoforado et al (), and vulnerability indicators for the Canadian context have been summarized by Kosatsky et al (), Pengelly et al (), Rinner et al (), and Belanger et al ().…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The scientific literature exploring physical and social factors related to heat vulnerability is extensive, but most studies have focused on the extreme heat event in Europe in 2003 or previous events in the United States (US). Results vary substantially by Chestnut et al (1998), Naughton et al (2002, Robine et al (2008), Anderson andBell (2009), Garc ıa-Herrera et al (2010), and Alcoforado et al (2015), and vulnerability indicators for the Canadian context have been summarized by Kosatsky et al (2005), Pengelly et al (2007), Rinner et al (2013), andBelanger et al (2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Using multiple disparate data sources to map heat vulnerability: Vancouver case study

Aminipouri

Knudby

2016

Canadian Geographies / Géographies canadiennes

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Key Messages Spatial patterns of heat vulnerability exist as a result of variations in the distribution of socio‐economic, environmental, and infrastructural factors. 105 socio‐economically deprived dissemination areas were found to be at higher risk for heat events; the effect of environmental and infrastructural factors may elevate this risk. Results may inform both short‐term emergency management efforts and longer‐term urban planning interventions to reduce health effects of extreme heat events.

show abstract

Anatomy of Heat Waves and Mortality in Toronto

Cited by 48 publications

References 9 publications

Delineation of Spatial Variability in the Temperature–Mortality Relationship on Extremely Hot Days in Greater Vancouver, Canada

Delineation of Spatial Variability in the Temperature–Mortality Relationship on Extremely Hot Days in Greater Vancouver, Canada

Rapid warming in Tibet, China: public perception, response and coping resources in urban Lhasa

Using multiple disparate data sources to map heat vulnerability: Vancouver case study

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About