Associations of apparent temperature with acute cardiac events and subtypes of acute coronary syndromes in Beijing, China

Limited evidence is available on apparent temperature (AT) and hospital admissions for acute cardiac events. We examined the associations of AT with admissions for acute cardiac events and acute coronary syndrome (ACS), and explored the effect difference between ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction ACS (NSTE-ACS). Poisson regression with distributed lag non-linear model was applied to examine the temperature-lag-admission associations. Stratified analyses were performed by gender and age-groups for acute cardiac events. A total of 11,657 acute cardiac events admissions were collected from hospital-based chest pain centers in Beijing, during 2017–2019. The single day effect of low AT (− 11 °C, 2.5th percentile) appeared on the 2nd day and persisted until the 11th day, with estimated relative risk (RR) ranging from 1.44 (95% CI: 1.159, 1.790) to 1.084 (95% CI: 1.022, 1.150) for acute cardiac events and from 1.034 (95% CI: 1.010, 1.059) to 1.006 (95% CI: 1.000, 1.011) for ACS. The single day effect of high AT (34 °C, 97.5th percentile) was only observed on the current day. The cold effect on acute cardiac events was more pronounced among female and older patients. The cumulative effect of high AT on STEMI admissions and low AT on NSTE-ACS reached a peak RR peak of 2.545 (95% CI: 1.016, 6.375) and 3.71 (95% CI: 1.315, 10.469) on lag 0–6 days, respectively. Both high and low ATs were associated with increased risk of acute cardiac events and ACS admissions. STEMI admissions may be more sensitive to high AT while NSTE-ACS to low AT.

On challenges of arranging a series of etchings as illustrated by Elena Grazhevskaya’s graduate project supervisor – Alexei Popov, honored artist of Russia and associate member of the Russian academy of arts

The article reveals a number of rules regulating the arrangement of a series of two-dimensional images universal both for works of fine art, as well as photography and design. The authors outline the key principles of creating such a series through a thorough description of the working process behind “The Herbs”, a set of five etchings by Elena Grazhevskaya. The aforementioned project was developed as a graduate qualification work at the Academy of Watercolor and Fine Arts of Sergey Andriaka under the supervision of the Honored Artist of the Russian Federation and Associate Member of the Russian Academy of Arts A. B. Popov. The authors of the article discuss the problem of selecting appropriate composition formats and their subsequent mirroring in relation to the centerpiece of the series at its preliminary sketching stage. The article touches upon the question of proper space composition in symmetrical images, i.e. how to convey a similar depth of couple pieces in the series. The fundamental techniques for working with the tonal color scheme are unveiled, namely the simultaneous portrayal of unity and contrast of lights and shadows in the pieces symmetrical to the central one. Furthermore, the paper addresses how to wisely choose a technique optimal for the type of etchings belonging to the series. The concurrent usage of aquatint and etching stroke technique is justified as it allows one to combine detailed object drawing with decorative aquatint painting as a compositionally organizing element. Likewise, the authors delineate the principles for selecting appropriate printing ink, particularly in the light of the use of a painterly “two-color printing effect” (application of a warm-cold effect of one ink in layers of different thickness). The article will be useful for teachers and students of art schools at all levels of education, photographers and designers, as well as anyone who is interested in creating a series of visual art works.

The Mortality Effect of Apparent Temperature: A Multi-City Study in Asia

(1) Background: The health effect of temperature has become a rising public health topic. The objective of this study is to assess the association between apparent temperature and non-accidental deaths, and the mortality burden attributed to cold and heat temperature; (2) Methods: The daily data on temperature and deaths were collected from 10 cities in Thailand, Korea and China. We fitted a time-series regression with a distributed lag nonlinear model (DLNM) to derive the health risk of temperature for each city and then pooled them to get the overall cumulative risk by multivariate meta-analysis. Additionally, we calculated the attributable fraction of deaths for heat and cold, which was defined as temperatures above and below minimum-mortality temperature (MMT); (3) Results: There are regional heterogeneities in the minimum mortality percentiles (MMP) and attributable fractions for different countries. The MMP varied from about the 5–10th percentile in Thailand to 63–93rd percentile in China and Korea. The attributable fractions of the total deaths due to short-term exposure to temperature in Asia is 7.62%, of which the cold effect (6.44%) is much higher than the heat effect (1.18%); (4) Conclusions: Our study suggested that apparent temperature was associated with an increase in non-accidental mortality. Most of the temperature-related mortality burden was attributable to cold, except for Thailand.

Effect of ambient temperature on stroke onset: a time-series analysis between 2003 and 2014 in Shenzhen, China

ObjectiveEvidence on the relationship between ambient temperature and morbidity of different stroke subtypes in China is limited. This study aimed to assess the influence of ambient temperature on stroke risk in Shenzhen, China.MethodsFrom 1 January 2003 to 31 December 2014, 114 552 stroke cases in Shenzhen were collected. A generalised additive model with quasi-Poisson regression combined with a distributed lag non-linear model was applied to evaluate the temperature effects on stroke subtypes. Furthermore, this study explored the variability of the effects across sex, age and education.ResultsThe immediate heat effects on ischaemic stroke (IS) and the persistent effects of ambient temperature on intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) were significant. Overall, the cold-related relative risks (RRs) of IS, ICH and subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) were 1.02 (0.97–1.07), 1.16 (1.04–1.30) and 1.12 (0.61–2.04), whereas the heat-related RRs were 1.00 (0.97–1.04), 0.80 (0.73–0.88) and 1.05 (0.63–1.78), respectively. For IS, a weakly beneficial cold effect was found among men while a detrimental heat effect among both men and women, the elderly and higher-educated population at lag0. However, regarding ICH, the temperature effects in men, the young and higher-educated population are stronger at lag0–4, lag0–7 as cold reveals threat and heat reveals protection.ConclusionResponses of diverse stroke subtypes to ambient temperature varied. Effective measures should be taken to increase public awareness about the effects of ambient temperature on stroke attack and to educate the public about self-protection.

Forming impressions of hotels: the subtle power of words

The aim of the study was to investigate the potential power that subtle wording changes may have in altering the impressions that potential guests gain from brief descriptions, such as on the home pages of hotel websites or in online reviews. The intention was to determine whether the findings of earlier psychological research on the formation of impressions of people could be replicated regarding impression formation of hotels. In the psychological experiments, students first read a brief biography about a guest lecturer, then later attended a discussion led by him. They then rated their impressions of the man on a number of dimensions. All of the respondents experienced exactly the same discussion and received exactly the same biography. The words were identical except for one word. In one version a sentence said people who knew this man described him as cold. In the other version he was described as warm. The change of this one word alone had significant effects on people’s ratings on some dimensions and very little effect on others. For example, those who received the warm version rated the man as more generous than those who received the cold version. The current study was designed to see if this effect would occur when hotel management students formed an impression of a hotel, especially when there was limited information available – such as on the home page of a hotel’s website. Data were collected from 60 students from a hotel management college who were familiar with hotels either as guests, students on industry placement, or both. The students were in their early twenties and represented a number of different nationalities. Information from the home pages of two New Zealand hotel websites was adapted and edited to form a description of a fictitious hotel. The brief description of the hotel was followed by a survey containing 15 items, each describing a dimension of the hotel. The students gave each item a score of between 1 and 6 (see Table 1). Respondents received exactly the same descriptions of the hotel except for the change of one word. In one version a sentence said, “Guests who have stayed at the hotel generally describe it as having a cold ambience.” The same sentence in the other version said, “warm ambience.” Thirty students read the warm version and the other 30 read the cold version. Table 1: Statistically significant dimensions of ‘warm’ versus ‘cold’ hotel Hotel dimension (scored 1→6) ‘Warm’ mean ‘Cold’ mean t-test result (p) Popular → Unpopular 2.0 3.3 0.002 Busy, bustling → Not busy, inactive 2.5 3.6 0.011 Quiet → Noisy 2.6 3.5 0.019 Tidy, well-kept → Untidy, run-down 2.0 2.8 0.035 Environmentally friendly → Not environmentally friendly 2.4 3.1 0.040 Modest → Extravagant 3.9 3.1 0.042 Knowledgeable staff → Not knowledgeable staff 2.9 3.3 0.050 Note: mean=average score (between 1 and 6); p=probability Statistical analysis of the group averages revealed seven statistically significant dimensions. Table 1 shows that the ‘warm’ group perceived the hotel as more likely to be more popular, busier and bustling, quieter, tidier and well kept, environmentally friendly, extravagant and with more knowledgeable staff than did the ‘cold’ group. Having rated the warm ambience as more likely to be bustling it might be expected that it would be rated noisier. That was not the case. Revisiting some students and further questioning them revealed that a cold ambience was perceived as more likely to have harsh surfaces such as tiles and glass that would echo noise. A warm ambience was perceived to be more likely to be carpeted, curtained and with décor that absorbed sound. The findings show that the warm-cold effect could be replicated regarding impression formation of hotels and may suggest that some dimensions are core for forming an impression and others are peripheral. It appears ambience described as warm and cold may be among the core dimensions. The current study was an initial exploration of this phenomenon and further research would be required to identify whether other dimensions are core or peripheral. However, a more recent replication of the study by the current author using “welcoming – unwelcoming” produced five statistically different dimensions and hence may also be a core dimension. Whatever the case, the findings suggest that care needs to be taken when hoteliers choose wording to include in descriptions on the home pages of their websites. Corresponding author Robin Hill can be contacted at: [email protected]

Effect of ambient temperature on incidence of tuberculosis and effect modification by meteorological factors in Jinan, China during 2012-2015

ObjectiveFor assessing the nonlinearity and delayed effect of temperature on incidence of Tuberculosis (TB) and effect modification by meteorology factors, daily data on meteorological factors, air pollutants and incidence were obtained in Jinan, China, from 2012 to 2015.MethodsA distributed lag non-linear model (DLNM) combined with quasi-Poisson regression model was employed to assess the nonlinearity and the delayed effect of associations. We further built a series of weather-stratified models categorizing the meteorology factors into two levels to assess the effect modification of the ambient temperature effect. ResultsThe correlation between tuberculosis (TB) cases and daily average temperature (Tmean) was nonlinear with a delayed effect. At the current day (lag 0), the increase of Tmean decreased the risk of TB incidence; over lag 0-70 days, the decrease of low Tmean and the increase of the high Tmean both indicated the increased risk of TB. The cold temperature showed an immediate effect at the current day, with a harvesting effect in the following days. There was no significant harvesting effect in hot effect. Meanwhile, the effect of hot temperature on TB appeared with an about two-week lag and was lower than cold effect. The effect modifications by relative humidity, wind speed and sunshine duration were observed.ConclusionResults indicate that there was a nonlinear correlation with a harvesting effect between temperature and TB in Jinan, and both cold effect and heat effect exist the delayed effect. Results also pointed to the importance of considering effect modification by meteorological factors in assessing temperature effects on incidence of TB. Which might shed light on the strategy of TB prevention and control.

Effect of ambient temperature on incidence of tuberculosis and effect modification by meteorological factors in Jinan, China during 2012-2015: A time-series analysis

Objective For assessing the nonlinearity and delayed effect of temperature on incidence of tuberculosis and effect modification by meteorology factors, daily data on meteorological factors, air pollutants and incidence were obtained in Jinan, China, from 2012 to 2015.Methods A distributed lag non-linear model (DLNM) combined with quasi-Poisson regression model was employed to assess the associations. We further built a series of weather-stratified models to assess the effect modification by meteorological factors.Results The correlation between tuberculosis cases and daily average temperature (Tmean) was negatively nonlinear with a delayed effect. At the current day (lag 0), the increase of Tmean decreased the risk of tuberculosis incidence; over lag 0-70 days, the decrease of low Tmean and the increase of the high Tmean both indicated the increased risk of TB. The cold temperature showed an immediate effect at the current day, with a harvesting effect in the following days. The effect modifications by relative humidity, wind speed and sunshine duration were observed. Conclusion The cold effect accelerates the onset of potentially infected people in the short term. It is necessary to consider effect modification by meteorological factors in assessing temperature effects on incidence of tuberculosis. Which might shed light on the strategy of tuberculosis prevention and control.

THE EFFECT OF THE COLD STRESS ON MORPHOLOGICAL AND FUNCTIONAL PARAMETERS OF THE THYMUS IN THE EXPERIMENT

The thymus is the central organ of the immunogenesis, the functioning of which determines the protective reactions of the organism. Various stressors can influence the immune organs. One of these factors is exposure to low temperatures. The aim of this research was studying the effect of experimental cold stress on the morphological and functional state of rat thymus using morphometric analysis. The cold exposure was done by placing the rats in individual cages in a refrigeration chamber at a temperature of -10 ± 20 °C for 1 hour at the same time of day for 7, 14, 21, and 30 days. Histological examination of thymus preparations stained with hematoxylin and eosin; on the 7th day after exposure to cold, the area of the cortical substance is significantly reduced compared with the control group, while the area of the medulla tends to increase. Analysis of the cell composition showed an increase in the number of epithelia-reticular cells in the subcapsular zone and a slight decrease in the number of lymphocytes. On the 14th day of exposure, the areas of cortical and medulla and the cortical-cerebral index do not differ from the indicators of intact control. Morphometric counting of cellular elements showed an increase in the number of lymphocytes, epithelia-reticulocytes, and macrophages. After 21 days of the experiment, data on the relative areas of cortical and medulla shows a significant decrease in the rate compared with all the first groups. The counting of cellular elements during this period showed marked changes observed in all morphological and functional zones of the thymus. In the subcapsular zone, there is a sharp decrease in the number of dividing lymphocytes. The number of epithelia-reticular cells is increased relative to the norm. There is frequent detection of apoptotic bodies and fat cells. In the medulla, there is an increase in the number of epithelia-reticulocytes compared with the 7th and 14th day. On the 30th day after exposure, the areas of cortical, medulla, and cortical-cerebral index remained at the same level as on the 21st day. There is a significant decrease in epithelia-reticular cells in the subcapsular zone, a significant decrease in the cortical substance and the cortico-medullary zone compared with all groups, and a significant increase in their number in the medulla. Hassall’s bodies are characterized by pronounced degenerative changes in epithelia-reticulocytes with cellular debris. In the subcapsular zone, a reduced number of cells with mitosis figures is maintained. It was established that as a result of cold stress on days 7, 21 and 30, there is a redistribution of volume and cellular composition, various structural and functional zones, indicating a decrease in the functional activity of the thymus, an increase in the death of lymphocytes by apoptosis, a decrease in mitotic activity, and accumulation of macrophages. Morphological and functional data of the 14th day of the experiment indicate the development of compensatory-adaptive changes in the thymus on the cold effect, manifested in the form of activation of cell division in the cortical substance and the cortical-medullary zone.