Cold weather exposure may increase risk for heart attack
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Key takeaways:
- Researchers reported an increase in hospitalizations for heart attack about 2 to 6 days after cold spells in Sweden.
- Weather-related cardiac risk warrants further investigation.
Hospital admissions for heart attack increased after exposure to lower air temperature and cold spells, researchers reported at the European Society of Cardiology Congress.
The rise in hospitalizations was delayed and peaked 2 to 6 days after exposure to cold weather, according to the findings, which were simultaneously published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
Results suggest that “individuals may be particularly vulnerable to acute cardiac events during periods of cold stress,” Wenli Ni, PhD, postdoctoral research fellow at Harvard University, said in a press release issued by the ACC.
Previous research has shown that temperature swings can trigger MI.
“There is interest in weather episodes, with hot temperature and its relationship to CV death. Here, we see in a certain part of northern Europe that cold spells also may affect CV risk,” Stefan Agewall, MD, PhD, senior cardiology professor at Oslo University in Norway and guest professor in cardiology at Karolinska Institute at Danderyd Hospital in Sweden, told Healio.
The researchers aimed to better understand how short-term exposure to lower air temperatures and cold spells impacts risk for MI hospitalizations. They analyzed data from 120,380 individuals in the SWEDEHEART registry who were admitted for MI from 2005 to 2019 during Sweden’s cold season, which lasts from October to March. For this study, a cold spell was defined as at least two consecutive days when the daily mean temperature was below the 10th percentile.
A decrease in percentile temperature of 1 unit was associated with increased risk for total MI (OR = 1.1; 95% CI, 1.06-1.14), non-STEMI (OR = 1.11; 95% CI, 1.06-1.16) and STEMI (OR = 1.08; 95% CI, 1-1.15) after 2 to 6 days, according to the results.
The researchers found the same increased risk for hospitalizations 2 to 6 days after cold spells: total MI (OR = 1.08; 95% CI, 1.04-1.12), non-STEMI (OR = 1.07; 95% CI, 1.02-1.12) and STEMI (OR = 1.1; 95% CI, 1.02-1.17).
Risk for MI was decreased at 0 to 1 days following exposure to lower air temperatures and cold spells. According to the researchers, this finding may be related to behavior modification during periods of cold weather — for example, staying indoors or delaying health care. However, such behavior changes are not sustainable, which may account for the delayed impact on hospitalizations for MI 2 to 6 days after cold weather exposure, according to the release.
The results of this study may help health care professionals and the media give advice to the population during periods of cold weather, Agewall told Healio.
Reference:
For more information:
Stefan Agewall, MD, PhD, can be reached at stefan.agewall@ki.se.
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Agewall S, et al. Insights into cardiovascular health: Trends, well-being and economic evaluations. Presented at: European Society of Cardiology Congress; Aug. 30-Sept. 2, 2024; London (hybrid meeting).
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