Wylie Burke, MD, PhD Wylie Burke, MD, PhD presents "Bioethical Issues in Genomics and Electronic Health Records" at UCSF Informatics Day 2014. By: UCSF Institute for Human Genetics … Continue reading →

Contact Information Available for logged-in reporters only Newswise HOUSTON (Feb. 10, 2015) Houston experienced its hottest summer on record in 2011, resulting in 278 excess emergency department visits per day during the August heat wave, according to research from The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) published recently in Environmental Health. The 2011 heat wave led to significantly more emergency department visits than would be typical of that period; however, mortality rates did not change much, said Kai Zhang, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Epidemiology, Human Genetics & Environmental Sciences at UTHealth School of Public Health. For 30 out of 31 days in August, temperatures exceeded 100 degrees in Houston. Emergency department admissions among those ages 65 and older rose by 8.9 percent during the heat wave. Studies have shown that the elderly are especially affected by excess heat. Previous research has established that heat waves in California and Chicago led to high mortality rates and emergency department visits, especially in Chicago where a heat wave caused 692 fatalities. It could be that the mortality rate did not change much in Houston because 98 percent of residents had air conditioning and were acclimated to the … Continue reading →