TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2014//
TI  - Socio-demographic vulnerability to heatwave impacts in Brisbane, Australia: a time series analysis
JO  - Australian and New Zealand journal of public health
A1  - Sam Toloo, Ghasem
A1  - Guo, Yuming
A1  - Turner, Lyle
A1  - Qi, Xin
A1  - Aitken, Peter
A1  - Tong, Shilu
SP  - 430
EP  - 435
VL  - 38
IS  - 5
N2  - OBJECTIVE: Examining the association between socioeconomic disadvantage and heat-related emergency department (ED) visits during heatwave periods in Brisbane, 2000-2008. <br><br>METHODS: Data from 10 public EDs were analysed using a generalised additive model for disease categories, age groups and gender. <br><br>RESULTS: Cumulative relative risks (RR) for non-external causes other than cardiovascular and respiratory diseases were 1.11 and 1.05 in most and least disadvantaged areas, respectively. The pattern persisted on lags 0-2. Elevated risks were observed for all age groups above 15 years in all areas. However, with RRs of 1.19-1.28, the 65-74 years age group in more disadvantaged areas stood out, compared with RR=1.08 in less disadvantaged areas. This pattern was observed on lag 0 but did not persist. The RRs for male presentations were 1.10 and 1.04 in most and less disadvantaged areas; for females, RR was 1.04 in less disadvantaged areas. This pattern persisted across lags 0-2. <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: Heat-related ED visits increased during heatwaves. However, due to overlapping confidence intervals, variations across socioeconomic areas should be interpreted cautiously. Implications: ED data may be utilised for monitoring heat-related health impacts, particularly on the first day of heatwaves, to facilitate prompt interventions and targeted resource allocation.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1326-0200
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1753-6405.12253
ID  - ref1
ER  -