Background: Very few studies have focused on the relationship between ambient apparent temperature (AT) and admission of mental and behaviour disorders (MDs). Therefore, a time-series study was conducted in Yancheng, China, to explore the effects of AT on the daily emergency admissions of patients with MDs over the period of 2014-17.
Methods: A quasi-Poisson generalized linear model (GLM) combined with a distributed lag non-linear model (DLNM) was adopted to explore the associations after adjusting for time trend, day of the week, humidity, sunshine duration, rainfall, holidays and air pollutants. In the subgroup analysis, the modification effects of age and sex were also examined.
Results: Overall, 8438 cases of MDs emergency admissions were identified. With the apparent temperature with the minimum number of admissions (- 3.4 °C) serving as a reference, a positive correlation emerged between high AT and daily emergency admissions of patients with MDs in Yancheng, China, with the lagged effect of 1 to 5 days. The subgroup analysis demonstrated a positive relationship between AT and MDs emergency admissions among males and individuals younger than 45 years old, with no lagged effect.
Conclusions: The results will provide important scientific evidence for mental health policy-makers and practitioners for possible intervention, especially among the vulnerable populations.
Keywords: Apparent temperature; Hospital emergency admissions; Mental and behavioral disorders; Time-series analysis.