Anomalias das temperaturas extremas do ar em Fortaleza: correlações com a morbidade hospitalar por doenças cardiovasculares

Abstract

This study falls into the scope of Human Bioclimatology under the perspective of ideas by Besancenot (2001, 2002). We sought to identify strong and statistically significant correlations between anomalies of extreme air temperatures and other climatic attributes (maximum, mean and minimum air temperature, thermal amplitude, thermal comfort index- Te- index, relative humidity, wind speed and precipitation) and Cardiovascular Disease - CVD morbidity of elderly patients treated in public and convened hospitals, in order to detect occurrences of heat and cold waves in the city of Fortaleza for the period 2004-2009. Among the thermal periods with greater intensity recorded in the years of the series of extreme air temperatures, four corresponded to periods of strong heat (events in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008) and one referred to a period of strong freshness (event in 2009). We verified strong correlations (p<0.05) between minimum air temperature, thermal amplitude, anomalous minimal temperature and precipitation and hospitalizations only for the positive thermal episode of 2007. The measures of relative risk and 95% confidence interval indicated that air thermal amplitude and precipitation were associated as a protective factor. In many associations, particularly those concerning the episode of the year 2007, the increase in relative risk for total hospitalizations occurred in a borderline level. It was concluded that heat and fresh periods of the series 2004 - 2009 were not configured as heat or cold waves due to the lack of strong and statistically significant correlations between extreme air temperatures, thermal anomalies and hospitalizations. Given that heat and cold waves are defined more meteorologically than epidemiologically and affect the population selectively, especially elderly patients with heart disease (age group most vulnerable to the events), it was statistically established that the heat and cold periods that occurred in Fortaleza in the period 2004-2009 did not work as an environmental device in aggravation of cardiovascular disease in the elderly population of Fortaleza.