Examining the effects of ambient temperature on pre-term birth in Central Australia
Preterm birth (born before 37 completed weeks of gestation) is one of the leading causes of death among children under 5 years of age. Several recent studies have examined the association between extreme temperature and preterm births, but there have been almost no such studies in arid Australia. In...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2017
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/79605 |
| _version_ | 1848764079955509248 |
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| author | Mathew, S. Mathur, D. Chang, A.B. McDonald, E. Singh, G.R. Nur, Darfiana Gerritsen, R. |
| author_facet | Mathew, S. Mathur, D. Chang, A.B. McDonald, E. Singh, G.R. Nur, Darfiana Gerritsen, R. |
| author_sort | Mathew, S. |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Preterm birth (born before 37 completed weeks of gestation) is one of the leading causes of death among children under 5 years of age. Several recent studies have examined the association between extreme temperature and preterm births, but there have been almost no such studies in arid Australia. In this paper, we explore the potential association between exposures to extreme temperatures during the last 3 weeks of pregnancy in a Central Australian town. An immediate effect of temperature exposure is observed with an increased relative risk of 1%–2% when the maximum temperature exceeded the 90th percentile of the summer season maximum temperature data. Delayed effects are also observed closer to 3 weeks before delivery when the relative risks tend to increase exponentially. Immediate risks to preterm birth are also observed for cold temperature exposures (0 to –6 ◦C), with an increased relative risk of up to 10%. In the future, Central Australia will face more hot days and less cold days due to climate change and hence the risks posed by extreme heat is of particular relevance to the community and health practitioners. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T11:13:40Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-79605 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T11:13:40Z |
| publishDate | 2017 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-796052020-06-15T00:01:15Z Examining the effects of ambient temperature on pre-term birth in Central Australia Mathew, S. Mathur, D. Chang, A.B. McDonald, E. Singh, G.R. Nur, Darfiana Gerritsen, R. Science & Technology Life Sciences & Biomedicine Environmental Sciences Public, Environmental & Occupational Health Environmental Sciences & Ecology indigenous climate change preterm birth arid desert remote CLIMATE-CHANGE RISK DELIVERY EXPOSURE PREMATURITY ASSOCIATION GESTATION INFANTS RUPTURE STRESS Preterm birth (born before 37 completed weeks of gestation) is one of the leading causes of death among children under 5 years of age. Several recent studies have examined the association between extreme temperature and preterm births, but there have been almost no such studies in arid Australia. In this paper, we explore the potential association between exposures to extreme temperatures during the last 3 weeks of pregnancy in a Central Australian town. An immediate effect of temperature exposure is observed with an increased relative risk of 1%–2% when the maximum temperature exceeded the 90th percentile of the summer season maximum temperature data. Delayed effects are also observed closer to 3 weeks before delivery when the relative risks tend to increase exponentially. Immediate risks to preterm birth are also observed for cold temperature exposures (0 to –6 ◦C), with an increased relative risk of up to 10%. In the future, Central Australia will face more hot days and less cold days due to climate change and hence the risks posed by extreme heat is of particular relevance to the community and health practitioners. 2017 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/79605 10.3390/ijerph14020147 English http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ MDPI AG fulltext |
| spellingShingle | Science & Technology Life Sciences & Biomedicine Environmental Sciences Public, Environmental & Occupational Health Environmental Sciences & Ecology indigenous climate change preterm birth arid desert remote CLIMATE-CHANGE RISK DELIVERY EXPOSURE PREMATURITY ASSOCIATION GESTATION INFANTS RUPTURE STRESS Mathew, S. Mathur, D. Chang, A.B. McDonald, E. Singh, G.R. Nur, Darfiana Gerritsen, R. Examining the effects of ambient temperature on pre-term birth in Central Australia |
| title | Examining the effects of ambient temperature on pre-term birth in Central Australia |
| title_full | Examining the effects of ambient temperature on pre-term birth in Central Australia |
| title_fullStr | Examining the effects of ambient temperature on pre-term birth in Central Australia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Examining the effects of ambient temperature on pre-term birth in Central Australia |
| title_short | Examining the effects of ambient temperature on pre-term birth in Central Australia |
| title_sort | examining the effects of ambient temperature on pre-term birth in central australia |
| topic | Science & Technology Life Sciences & Biomedicine Environmental Sciences Public, Environmental & Occupational Health Environmental Sciences & Ecology indigenous climate change preterm birth arid desert remote CLIMATE-CHANGE RISK DELIVERY EXPOSURE PREMATURITY ASSOCIATION GESTATION INFANTS RUPTURE STRESS |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/79605 |