Association between weather conditions and the incidence of emergency gynecological consultations

Abstract

Objective: This study examined the influence of weather conditions on the incidence of outpatient emergency consultations at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Regional Hospital in Lugano, Switzerland.

Study design: The medical records of all women who attended the outpatient emergency unit at the Department for Obstetrics and Gynecology over the 1-year study period were reviewed. The final diagnosis was pelvic pain of unidentified origin in 180 cases, menorrhagia and/or metrorrhagia in 95 cases, threatened abortion in 56 cases and spontaneous abortion in 54 cases. The meteorological factors considered were atmospheric pressure, temperature, humidity and global radiation. A logistic regression model was used to correlate the occurrence of symptoms with the chosen weather factors.

Results: High mean daily temperature was found to be a significant predictor of pelvic pain (p < 0.001). A rise in barometric pressure compared to the previous day increased the probability of menorrhagia and/or metrorrhagia (p = 0.001). Higher minimal temperature (p = 0.011) and an increase in atmospheric pressure (p = 0.006) were identified as positive predictors of threatened abortion. None of the meteorological factors considered seemed to influence the frequency of spontaneous abortions.

Conclusion: Meteorological factors such as temperature and barometric change appear to affect the probability of emergency admissions for gynecological symptoms including uterine bleeding, threatened abortion and pelvic pain.