Effect of Seasonal Changes on Cervical Fractures: Antalya Province

Abstract

Aim: Cervical fractures represent a critical type of spinal injury, with the majority occurring in the cervical spine, which is both the most mobile and vulnerable part of the spine. Given the dearth of studies in the literature examining the relationship between cervical fracture and season, our objective was to investigate this relationship and its potential interactions with climate. Materials and Methods: The study analysed servical fracture patients who visited the emergency department of a tertiary training and research hospital between 01.01.2023 and 12.31.2023. The data set comprised the following variables: daily average air temperature (, dew point, humidity, weather conditions, wind speed, atmospheric pressure  and precipitation. These meteorological parameters were obtained via an application programming interface (API), where historical weather data is stored, and subsequently matched with patient records. Results: A total of 82 cases of cervical fractures were followed, of which 40 underwent surgical operations.The average humidity was 55.39 ± 21.6%. These results demonstrate a significantly lower humidity level on days with fractures (p = 0.029). The results of the month-by-month comparison revealed no statistically significant difference in the incidence of fractures, surgically treated fractures, or fractures treated observationally (p=0.774, 0.611, and 0.906). The comparison of the data according to season revealed no statistically significant difference (p=0.650, 0.966, 0.681). Conclusion: The incidence of cervical fractures does not appear to be affected by seasonal factors such as weather conditions, temperature, wind, and pressure. However, humidity does seem to exert an influence