Seasonality of deaths with respect to age and cause in Chitral District Pakistan.

BACKGROUND:Seasonal variability in mortality has been studied in various regions globally. Proper evaluation of seasonally fluctuating mortality is important to establish effective public health measures. We investigated the overall, age-specific, and cause-specific seasonality of deaths in Chitral...

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Main Authors: Muhammad Asif, Khalid Nawaz, Zafar Zaheer, Helene Thygesen, Amani Abu-Shaheen, Muhammad Riaz
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2019-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0225994
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author Muhammad Asif
Khalid Nawaz
Zafar Zaheer
Helene Thygesen
Amani Abu-Shaheen
Muhammad Riaz
author_facet Muhammad Asif
Khalid Nawaz
Zafar Zaheer
Helene Thygesen
Amani Abu-Shaheen
Muhammad Riaz
author_sort Muhammad Asif
collection DOAJ
description BACKGROUND:Seasonal variability in mortality has been studied in various regions globally. Proper evaluation of seasonally fluctuating mortality is important to establish effective public health measures. We investigated the overall, age-specific, and cause-specific seasonality of deaths in Chitral District in Pakistan. METHOD:Data on 2577 deaths were provided by the Agha Khan Health Support Program. Seasonal mortality patterns concerning age and causes were examined using the X-12 ARIMA pseudo-additive decomposition method. RESULTS:Of the total deceased, 59.6% were males. The proportion of deceased males was significantly higher than the female (40.4%, p< 0.001). The average age at death was 57.7 years (SD = 28.7). On average, approximately 43 deaths occurred each month. More than 10% of the deaths occurred in children less than 5-years-of-age. Among all the causes of death, the most frequent was cardiovascular disease (n = 666, 25.8%) followed by respiratory disease (n = 482, 18.7%). Significant seasonality in the overall deaths was evident, with a peak in winter. Deaths in people ≥ 55-years-of-age were significantly seasonal and peaked in winter. Deaths due to cardiovascular, respiratory, and kidney related diseases were also significantly seasonal with winter peaks. Further, deaths due to external causes were significantly seasonal with summer peak. CONCLUSION:In the winter season, all-cause, except external, and age-specific mortality peaks in Chitral District, Pakistan. Deaths due to external causes and cardiovascular, respiratory, and kidney related diseases were significant seasonal effects.
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spelling doaj.art-51a970c8d4e04ee5bc2b9d4a967232052022-12-21T19:29:47ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032019-01-011412e022599410.1371/journal.pone.0225994Seasonality of deaths with respect to age and cause in Chitral District Pakistan.Muhammad AsifKhalid NawazZafar ZaheerHelene ThygesenAmani Abu-ShaheenMuhammad RiazBACKGROUND:Seasonal variability in mortality has been studied in various regions globally. Proper evaluation of seasonally fluctuating mortality is important to establish effective public health measures. We investigated the overall, age-specific, and cause-specific seasonality of deaths in Chitral District in Pakistan. METHOD:Data on 2577 deaths were provided by the Agha Khan Health Support Program. Seasonal mortality patterns concerning age and causes were examined using the X-12 ARIMA pseudo-additive decomposition method. RESULTS:Of the total deceased, 59.6% were males. The proportion of deceased males was significantly higher than the female (40.4%, p< 0.001). The average age at death was 57.7 years (SD = 28.7). On average, approximately 43 deaths occurred each month. More than 10% of the deaths occurred in children less than 5-years-of-age. Among all the causes of death, the most frequent was cardiovascular disease (n = 666, 25.8%) followed by respiratory disease (n = 482, 18.7%). Significant seasonality in the overall deaths was evident, with a peak in winter. Deaths in people ≥ 55-years-of-age were significantly seasonal and peaked in winter. Deaths due to cardiovascular, respiratory, and kidney related diseases were also significantly seasonal with winter peaks. Further, deaths due to external causes were significantly seasonal with summer peak. CONCLUSION:In the winter season, all-cause, except external, and age-specific mortality peaks in Chitral District, Pakistan. Deaths due to external causes and cardiovascular, respiratory, and kidney related diseases were significant seasonal effects.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0225994
spellingShingle Muhammad Asif
Khalid Nawaz
Zafar Zaheer
Helene Thygesen
Amani Abu-Shaheen
Muhammad Riaz
Seasonality of deaths with respect to age and cause in Chitral District Pakistan.
PLoS ONE
title Seasonality of deaths with respect to age and cause in Chitral District Pakistan.
title_full Seasonality of deaths with respect to age and cause in Chitral District Pakistan.
title_fullStr Seasonality of deaths with respect to age and cause in Chitral District Pakistan.
title_full_unstemmed Seasonality of deaths with respect to age and cause in Chitral District Pakistan.
title_short Seasonality of deaths with respect to age and cause in Chitral District Pakistan.
title_sort seasonality of deaths with respect to age and cause in chitral district pakistan
url https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0225994
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AT helenethygesen seasonalityofdeathswithrespecttoageandcauseinchitraldistrictpakistan
AT amaniabushaheen seasonalityofdeathswithrespecttoageandcauseinchitraldistrictpakistan
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