The impact of extreme weather conditions on mortality in two Chinese populations

This study examines the impacts of extreme weather conditions, such as sustained cold weather or heat waves on population health and mortality. It also examine variations in their impacts on deaths caused by major diseases and among sub-population groups.

To examine these research questions, we use detailed mortality and environmental data collected from HongKong and Taiwan. This includes about five million death records collected over last three decades from the 1970s, daily meteorological data for the same period and daily air quality data for the last 15 years.

We will use the conventional Generalised Additive Model and a method we are now developing to model and study the relationship between daily mortality and a wide range of environmental factors, especially the impact of extreme weather conditions on daily mortality changes. We also examine intra-population variations in such impacts and identify the vulnerable population. Because our mortality and environmental data cover for a long period, we also intend to examine changes in the impact of extreme weather over time.

The study is expected to shed new lights on the environment-mortality relationship in East Asia, and its major research findings will have considerable policy implications and help to improve risk prevention among the vulnerable population.