Cold Spell Impacts on Daily Mortality in 6 Metropolitan Cities in Korea (1991-2010) : using Spatial Synoptic Classification

This study examines cold spell effects on cause-related mortality in Korean 6 metropolitan cities during 1991-2010.

To classify the cold stressful days, synoptic climatological approach, Spatial Synoptic Classification (SSC) has utilized to sub-dividing the offensive days.

As a result, Dry Polar (DP) weather type has successfully represented the typical cold and dry weather influenced by the continental Siberian High activity with showing the highest frequency during the winter period.

To explore more cold stressful days, we set DP (-) and DP (--) days which characterized by lower temperature and humidity, and stronger westerly.

Mortality data has classified by age and cause of death by whole disease, cardiovascular, and respiratory diseases according to the International Classification of Disease-10th revision.

Standardization considered inter-annual changes by yearly mean level of winter mortality has applied to regression model.

And the linear trend has used as a baseline mortality. Excess mortality net increasing by cold-stressful DP subsets were estimated.

Health effects of cause-specific excess mortality showed more critical severity on elderly group on DP (-) days.

In addition, the strongest net increase of health effects were estimated under DP (--) days significantly.

All the results demonstrates SSC could be suitable synoptic climatological approach for diagnosis of the link and effects between the weather condition and human health in Korean large cities.