THE IMPACT OF HIGH THE AIR TEMPERATURES ON PATIENTS WITH CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES

Abstract

Introduction. Climate change is one of the biggest global threats to humanity in the 21^st century. Health is already affected by rising global temperatures and the destruction of natural ecosystems. Scientists unanimously state that an increase in global temperature of 1.5°C and the continued loss of biodiversity risks significantly affecting the health of the world's population with irreversible consequences.

Material and methods. A descriptive, literature review-type study was carried out. The study was based on the literature review of the PubMed digital library and ResearchGATE social network for the selection of scientific articles. The results of the keyword search identified 87 bibliographic sources in PubMed and the top 10 pages (10 articles per page) in ResearcheGATE (100 articles in total) were evaluated. The final sample was 22 articles.

Results. Analyses incorporating a wide variety of environmental data sources have identified increases in cardiovascular risk factors, hospitalizations and mortality from intensified air pollution, wildfires, heat waves, extreme weather events, sea level rise and pandemic diseases. Global warming trends continue to exacerbate natural disasters mediated by climate change.

Patients with cardiovascular diseases are in uncertain situations regarding the application of treatment during heatwave. They cannot survive without treatment, but at the same time, some drugs with tropical action can adversely affect the condition of these patients.

Conclusions. Current trends in global warming and climate change may have a profound impact on the epidemiology of hypertension and cardiovascular disease. Extreme hot and cold temperatures are linked to acute cardiovascular events. Variability in temperatures can increase the risk of cardiovascular events, especially in the elderly, in whom physiological adaptations to extreme temperature changes are slower.