Climatic factors in relation to diarrhoea hospital admissions in rural Limpopo, South Africa

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Authors

Ikeda, Takayoshi
Kapwata, Thandi
Behera, Swadhin K.
Minakawa, Noboru
Hashizume, Masahiro
Sweijd, Neville
Mathee, Angela
Wright, Caradee Yael

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Publisher

MDPI

Abstract

Diarrheal disease is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality globally, particularly in children under 5 years of age. Factors related to diarrheal disease incidence include infection, malnutrition, and exposure to contaminated water and food. Climate factors also contribute to diarrheal disease. We aimed to explore the relationship between temperature, precipitation and diarrhoea case counts of hospital admissions among vulnerable communities living in a rural setting in South Africa. We applied ‘contour analysis’ to visually examine simultaneous observations in frequencies of anomalously high and low diarrhoea case counts occurring in a season, and assigning colours to di erences that were statistically significant based on chi-squared test results. Children under 5 years of age were especially vulnerable to diarrhoea during very dry, hot conditions as well as when conditions were wetter than usual. We saw an anomalously higher number of diarrhoea cases during ‘warmer than usual’ conditions in the dry winter season, with average winter temperatures in Limpopo being from about 5 to 10 C. As for ‘wetter than usual’ conditions, we saw an anomalously higher number of diarrhoea cases during ‘drier than usual’ conditions for the winter and spring. The lagged association seen in cumulative rainfall could not be distinguished in the same way for temperature-related variables (indicating rainfall had a larger impact on higher cases of diarrhoea), nor for the older age group of 5 years and older. Dry conditions were associated with diarrhoea in children under 5 years of age; such conditions may lead to increased water storage, raising the risks of water contamination. Reduced use of water for personal hygiene and cleaning of outdoor pit latrines also a ect sanitation quality. Rural communities require adequate and uninterrupted water provision, and healthcare providers should raise awareness about potential diarrhoeal risks, especially during the dry season as well as during wintertime when conditions are warmer than usual.

Description

Supplementary Materials: Figure S1: Statistically significant contour differences in anomalously high and low diarrhoea case counts for lag 0 to 8 weeks per consecutive weeks of precipitation among individuals aged 5 years and older for season DJF, Figure S2. Statistically significant contour differences in anomalously high and low diarrhoea case counts for lag 0 to 8 weeks per consecutive weeks of precipitation among individuals aged 5 years and older for season MAM, Figure S3. Statistically significant contour differences in anomalously high and low diarrhoea case counts for lag 0 to 8 weeks per consecutive weeks of precipitation among individuals under 5 years of age for season DJF, Figure S4. Statistically significant contour differences in anomalously high and low diarrhoea case counts for lag 0 to 8 weeks per consecutive weeks of precipitation among individuals under 5 years of age for season MAM, Figure S5. Statistically significant contour differences in anomalously high and low diarrhoea case counts for lag 0 to 8 weeks per consecutive weeks of minimum temperature among individuals under 5 years of age for season JJA, Figure S6. Statistically significant contour differences in anomalously high and low diarrhoea case counts for lag 0 to 8 weeks per consecutive weeks of maximum temperature among individuals under 5 years of age for season JJA, Figure S7. Statistically significant contour differences in anomalously high and low diarrhoea case counts for lag 0 to 8 weeks per consecutive weeks of maximum temperature among individuals under 5 years of age for season SON.

Keywords

Diarrhoeal disease, Climate change, Hygiene, Temperature, Environmental health, South Africa (SA)

Sustainable Development Goals

Citation

Ikeda, T., Kapwata, T., Behera, S.K. et al. 2019, 'Climatic factors in relation to diarrhoea hospital admissions in rural Limpopo, South Africa', Atmosphere, vol. 10, art. 552, pp. 1-18.