Seasonal variation in stroke incidence in Hisayama, Japan.

Abstract

We investigated seasonal variation in the incidence of cerebral stroke among the general population aged >40 years in November of 1961 in Hisayama, Japan. During the 24-year follow-up period, 311 cases of cerebrovascular diseases occurred. The date or month of onset was determined in 308 cases, of which 51 were classified as intracerebral hemorrhage, 223 as cerebral infarction, and 27 as subarachnoid hemorrhage. We observed a significant seasonality in the incidence of all stroke (p<0.01), of intracerebral hemorrhage (p<0.05), and of cerebral infarction (p<0.01), whereas subarachnoid hemorrhage had no significant seasonal pattern. Subjects <64 years of age showed a significant seasonal variation in the incidence of both intracerebral hemorrhage (p<0.05) and cerebral infarction (p<0.01). A significant seasonal pattern for the incidence of intracerebral hemorrhage was also noted among persons with hypertension (p<0.05) or a high serum cholesterol level (p<0.05), whereas such a pattern for cerebral infarction was documented among normotensive persons (p<0.05) and those with a low serum cholesterol level (p<0.01). In addition, the incidences of intracerebral hemorrhage and cerebral infarction were negatively correlated with mean ambient temperature (p<0.01 and p<0.05, respectively), and all stroke and intracerebral hemorrhage in men were significantly related to intradiurnal temperature change (/><0.05 and p<0.01, respectively). and Denmark 13 ; there is agreement among these reports that the incidence of onset of cerebrovascular diseases peaks in the winter-spring and has a trough in the summer-autumn, related to ambient temperature. On the other hand, reports from Yugoslavia, 14 Mexico, 15 and Brazil 16 have found no seasonality or relation to temperature in stroke rates. However, data for all those studies were based on hospitalized patients or mortality statistics. Little is known about seasonality of the incidence of cerebrovascular diseases among the general population.From the Second Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan.Supported in part by research grants for Cardiovascular Disease from the Ministry of Health and Welfare, Japan, and facilitated by the Japan-U.S. Cooperative Agreement in the Cardiovascular Area, the Japanese National Cardiovascular Center, and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Address for correspondence: Atsushi Shinkawa, MD, Second Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Kyushu University, Maidashi 3-1-1, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka, 812 Japan. Received October 13, 1989; accepted April 23, 1990.The aim of our study is to elucidate in a long-term prospective population survey conducted in Hisayama, Japan, the seasonal variation in the incidence of stroke and the influence of traditional risk factors for cerebrovascular diseases and environmental factors on the seasonality of the onset of cerebrovascular diseases. We selected sex, age at onset, blood pressure, and serum cholesterol concentration as the traditional risk facto...

Involvement of Meteorological Factors and Sex in the Occurrence of Subarachnoid Hemorrhage in Japan

“…2,4,6,11,12,14,15,17,18,20,22,24,26,27,[29][30][31][32][33] Hospital-based and populationbased studies that demonstrated significant seasonal variation found that the peak period for SAH differed widely. [4][5][6]15,20,24,26,32,33) No statistically significant seasonal variations were also observed in some studies.…”

“…8,13) However, investigation of the seasonal incidence of SAH has identified environmental and sociomedical factors correlated with aneurysm rupture. 2,4,6,11,12,14,15,17,18,20,22,24,26,27,[29][30][31][32][33] The present study investigated the relationship between sex and seasonal occurrence of SAH.…”

Impact of outdoor temperature on prewaking morning surge and nocturnal decline in blood pressure in a Japanese population

“…[1][2][3] Many studies have demonstrated an increased incidence of acute cardiovascular events in winter compared with other seasons. Blood pressure (BP) has also been reported to be higher in winter than in the other three seasons.…”

“…Keywords: ambulatory blood pressure monitoring; cold pressure stress; outdoor temperature; prewaking morning blood pressure surge INTRODUCTION Previous studies have indicated that the onset of cardiovascular events show circadian, weekly and seasonal variations. [1][2][3] Many studies have demonstrated an increased incidence of acute cardiovascular events in winter compared with other seasons. Blood pressure (BP) has also been reported to be higher in winter than in the other three seasons.…”

Temperature variation in the 24 hours before the initial symptoms of stroke

“…Palavras-chave: acidente vascular cerebral, temperatura, risco cardiovascular, sazonal. The correlation between strokes and seasonal variations have been studied in various places [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] . Some studies around the world have reported an increase of incidence, mortality, and stroke hospitalization during the coldest months of winter.…”