Harduar Morano, Laurel, Watkins, Sharon, Kintziger, Kristina

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

Published date May 31, 2016

A Comprehensive Evaluation of the Burden of Heat-Related Illness and Death within the Florida Population

  • States that the failure of the human body to thermoregulate can lead to severe outcomes (e.g., death) and lasting physiological damage
  • States, however, heat-related illness (HRI) is highly preventable via individual- and community-level modification.
  • Describes the burden of severe HRI morbidity and mortality among residents of a humid subtropical climate
  • Finds that the sub-groups with the highest relative rates regardless of data source or work-relatedness were males, minorities, and rural residents
  • Finds that those aged 15–35 years had the highest ED visit rates, while for non-work-related hospitalizations and deaths the rates increased with age