Weather and chinook winds in relation to spontaneous pneumothoraces

• Published in: Canadian Journal of Surgery Vol. 52; no. 5; pp. E151 - E155
• Main Authors: Schieman, Colin, MD, Graham, Andrew, MD, MHSc, Gelfand, Gary, MD, McFadden, Sean P., MD, Tiruta, Corina, BSc, Hill, Michael D., MD, Grondin, Sean C., MD, MPH
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: French; English
• Published: Canada CMA Impact Inc 01.10.2009; CMA Impact, Inc; Canadian Medical Association
• Subjects: Adult; Age Distribution; Alberta - epidemiology; Analysis of Variance; Atmospheric Pressure; Care and treatment; Chinook winds; Cohort Studies; Development and progression; Female; Health aspects; Health behavior; Humans; Humidity; Incidence; Male; Meteorological Concepts; Middle Aged; Online Research; Pneumothorax; Pneumothorax - epidemiology; Pneumothorax - etiology; Pneumothorax - physiopathology; Probability; Prognosis; Radiography, Thoracic; Respiratory diseases; Retrospective Studies; Risk factors; Severity of Illness Index; Sex Distribution; Statistics, Nonparametric; Studies; Surgery; Temperature; Urban Population; Weather; Wind; Alberta; Canada; Calgary Alberta Canada
• ISSN: 0008-428X; 1488-2310

Background Spontaneous pneumothorax (SP) results from the rupture of blebs or emphysematous bullae. Rapid changes in weather may precipitate this process. The city of Calgary is well suited to examine the effects of weather and specifically the rapid changes in weather associated with a chinook event and the occurrence of SP. Methods We performed a retrospective chart review of all cases of SP in the Calgary Health Region from 2001 to 2005. We obtained local hourly weather data over the same period from Environment Canada. We then compared the rates of SP on chinook and nonchinook days. Further, we compared mean daily temperature, humidity, wind speed and atmospheric pressure on chinook and nonchinook days. Results In all, 220 SP events from 149 patients occurred during the 4.5-year study period. There was no significant difference in the rate of SP on chinook days versus nonchinook days (p = 0.80). Similarly, there was no significant difference in the rate of SP in each of the 4 seasons (p = 0.30). We observed significantly higher average wind speed and lower mean atmospheric pressure on days with SP versus days without (p = 0.009, p = 0.020, respectively). There was no difference in mean temperature or mean relative humidity when comparing days with SP versus days without. Conclusion We found no association between SP and chinook events. We observed significantly higher wind speeds and lower atmospheric pressures on days with SP versus days without.