Increase in Heat-Related Illnesses Due to Prolonged Heatwave
More Than 100 Patients Reported for Three Consecutive Days
Due to the prolonged heatwave, the number of patients suffering from heat-related illnesses such as heatstroke has surpassed 2,000 this year. This figure is nearly three times higher than last year.
According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency on July 25, the cumulative number of heat-related illness cases recorded since the operation of the emergency room surveillance system began on May 15 this year has reached 2,103. This is 2.7 times higher compared to the same period last year (from May 20 to July 24). The number of presumed deaths from heat-related illnesses has also reached 10. On the previous day alone, 116 patients with heat-related illnesses were admitted to 516 emergency rooms nationwide. For the past three consecutive days, more than 100 cases of heat-related illness have been reported each day.
Heat-related illnesses are acute conditions caused by heat, usually accompanied by symptoms such as headache, dizziness, muscle cramps, and fatigue. Among the cumulative patients this year, heat exhaustion?commonly known as sunstroke?accounted for 60.1%. This was followed by heatstroke at 16.5%, heat cramps at 14.1%, and heat syncope at 8.0%. Of the patients, 31.4% were aged 65 or older. The most frequently reported locations of occurrence were workplaces (32.3%), rice fields or farmlands (13.1%), and roadsides (12.6%).
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
