Association of global weather changes with acute coronary syndromes: gaining insights from clinical trials data.

The aim of this study was to develop a method for the identification of global weather parameters and patient characteristics associated with a type of heart attack in which there is a sudden partial blockage of a coronary artery. This type of heart attack does not demonstrate an elevation of the ST segment on an electrocardiogram and is defined as a non-ST elevation acute coronary syndrome (NSTE-ACS). Data from the Global Summary of the Day database was linked with the enrollment and baseline data for a phase III international clinical trial in NSTE-ACS in four 48-h time periods covering the week prior to the clinical event that prompted enrollment in the study. Meteorological events were determined by standardizing the weather data from enrollment dates against an empirical distribution from the month prior. These meteorological events were then linked to the patients' geographic region, demographics and comorbidities to identify potential susceptible populations. After standardization, changes in temperature and humidity demonstrated an association with the enrollment event. Additionally there appeared to be an association with gender, region and a history of stroke. This methodology may provide a useful global insight into assessing the biometeorologic component of diseases from international data.