Pin Wang | The Chinese University of Hong Kong (original) (raw)

Papers by Pin Wang

Science of the Total Environment, 2018

Background: Rotavirus and norovirus are infectious pathogens primarily affecting children under 5... more Background: Rotavirus and norovirus are infectious pathogens primarily affecting children under 5 years old. The impact of rainfall on diarrheal diseases remains inconclusive. This study aimed to evaluate the association between short-term variation in rainfall, temperature and humidity, and rotavirus and norovirus hospitalizations among young children in Hong Kong.
Methods: Generalized additive negative binomial regression models with distributed lag non-linear terms, were fit with daily counts of hospital admissions due to rotavirus and norovirus infection as the outcomes and daily total rainfall and other meteorological variables as predictors, adjusting for seasonality and trend.
Results: Generally, greater rainfall was associated with fewer rotavirus, but more norovirus hospitalizations. Extreme precipitation (99.5 mm, 99th percentile) was found to be associated with 0.40 (95% confidence
interval (CI) 0.20–0.79) and 1.93 (95% CI 1.21–3.09) times the risk of hospitalization due to rotavirus and norovirus infection respectively, relative to trace rainfall. Stronger associations were observed in winter for rotavirus and in summer for norovirus. The duration of association with rotavirus was notably longer than norovirus. Higher temperatures were found to be associated with fewer hospitalizations for both rotavirus and norovirus infection, while higher relative humidity was generally associated with more norovirus, but fewer rotavirus, hospitalizations.

Environment International, 2018

Background: Little is known about the relationship between Salmonella infection and meteorologica... more Background: Little is known about the relationship between Salmonella infection and meteorological parameters other than air temperature. This study aimed to explore associations of Salmonella hospitalizations with temperature, relative humidity (RH) and rainfall.
Methods: With negative binomial distribution assumed, time-series regression model adjusting for season and time trend were constructed employing distributed lag non-linear models and generalized additive models. Meteorological variables including mean temperature, RH, and daily total rainfall as well as indicator variables including day of the week and public holiday were incorporated in the models.
Results: Higher temperature was strongly associated with more hospitalizations over the entire range of temperatures observed. There was a net 6.13 (95%Confidence Interval (CI) 3.52–10.67) relative risk of hospitalization at a temperature of 30.5 °C, relative to 13 °C, lag 0–16 days. Positive associations were found for RH above 60% and rainfall between 0 and 0.14 mm. Extreme high humidity (96%) and trace rainfall (0.02 mm) were associated with 2.06 (95%CI 1.35–3.14), lag 0–17 day, and 1.30 (95%CI 1.01–1.67), lag 0–26 days, relative risks of hospitalizations, relative to 60% and no rain, respectively.
Conclusions: High temperatures, high RH and light rainfall are positively associated with Salmonella hospitalizations. The very strong association with temperatures implies that hotter days will lead to increases in Salmonella morbidity in the absence of other changes, and the public health implications of this could be exacerbated by global climate change.

International Journal of Biometeorology, 2017

Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is an enterovirus-induced infectious disease, mainly affecti... more Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is an enterovirus-induced infectious disease, mainly affecting children under 5 years old. Outbreaks of HFMD in recent years indicate the disease interacts with both the weather and season. This study aimed to investigate the seasonal association between HFMD and weather variation in Chongqing, China. Generalized additive models and distributed lag non-linear models based on a maximum lag of 14 days, with negative binomial distribution assumed to account for overdispersion, were constructed to model the association between reporting HFMD cases from 2009 to 2014 and daily mean temperature, relative humidity, total rainfall and sun duration, adjusting for trend, season, and day of the week. The year-round temperature and relative humidity, rainfall in summer, and sun duration in winter were all significantly associated with HFMD. An inverted-U relationship was found between mean temperature
and HFMD above 19 °C in summer, with a maximum morbidity at 27 °C, while the risk increased linearly with the temperature in winter. A hockey-stick association was found for relative humidity in summer with increasing risks over 60%. Heavy rainfall, relative to no rain, was found to be associated with reduced HFMD risk in summer and 2 h of sunshine
could decrease the risk by 21% in winter. The present study showed meteorological variables were differentially associated with HFMD incidence in two seasons. Short-term weather variation surveillance and forecasting could be employed as an early indicator for potential HFMDoutbreaks.

PloS One, 2016

Background Hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) is an emerging enterovirus-induced infectious dise... more Background
Hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) is an emerging enterovirus-induced infectious disease for which the environmental risk factors promoting disease circulation remain inconclusive. This study aims to quantify the association of daily weather variation with hospitalizations for HFMD in Hong Kong, a subtropical city in China.

Methods
A time series of daily counts of HFMD public hospital admissions from 2008 through 2011 in Hong Kong was regressed on daily mean temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, solar radiation and total rainfall, using a combination of negative binomial generalized additive
models and distributed lag non-linear models, adjusting for trend, season, and day of week.

Results
There was a positive association between temperature and HFMD, with increasing trends from 8 to 20°C and above 25°C with a plateau in between. A hockey-stick relationship of relative humidity with HFMD was found, with markedly increasing risks over 80%. Moderate rainfall and stronger wind and solar radiation were also found to be associated with more admissions.

Conclusions
The present study provides quantitative evidence that short-term meteorological variations could be used as early indicators for potential HFMD outbreaks. Climate change is likely to lead to a substantial increase in severe HFMD cases in this subtropical city in the absence
of further interventions.

Science of the Total Environment, 2018

Background: Rotavirus and norovirus are infectious pathogens primarily affecting children under 5... more Background: Rotavirus and norovirus are infectious pathogens primarily affecting children under 5 years old. The impact of rainfall on diarrheal diseases remains inconclusive. This study aimed to evaluate the association between short-term variation in rainfall, temperature and humidity, and rotavirus and norovirus hospitalizations among young children in Hong Kong.
Methods: Generalized additive negative binomial regression models with distributed lag non-linear terms, were fit with daily counts of hospital admissions due to rotavirus and norovirus infection as the outcomes and daily total rainfall and other meteorological variables as predictors, adjusting for seasonality and trend.
Results: Generally, greater rainfall was associated with fewer rotavirus, but more norovirus hospitalizations. Extreme precipitation (99.5 mm, 99th percentile) was found to be associated with 0.40 (95% confidence
interval (CI) 0.20–0.79) and 1.93 (95% CI 1.21–3.09) times the risk of hospitalization due to rotavirus and norovirus infection respectively, relative to trace rainfall. Stronger associations were observed in winter for rotavirus and in summer for norovirus. The duration of association with rotavirus was notably longer than norovirus. Higher temperatures were found to be associated with fewer hospitalizations for both rotavirus and norovirus infection, while higher relative humidity was generally associated with more norovirus, but fewer rotavirus, hospitalizations.

Environment International, 2018

Background: Little is known about the relationship between Salmonella infection and meteorologica... more Background: Little is known about the relationship between Salmonella infection and meteorological parameters other than air temperature. This study aimed to explore associations of Salmonella hospitalizations with temperature, relative humidity (RH) and rainfall.
Methods: With negative binomial distribution assumed, time-series regression model adjusting for season and time trend were constructed employing distributed lag non-linear models and generalized additive models. Meteorological variables including mean temperature, RH, and daily total rainfall as well as indicator variables including day of the week and public holiday were incorporated in the models.
Results: Higher temperature was strongly associated with more hospitalizations over the entire range of temperatures observed. There was a net 6.13 (95%Confidence Interval (CI) 3.52–10.67) relative risk of hospitalization at a temperature of 30.5 °C, relative to 13 °C, lag 0–16 days. Positive associations were found for RH above 60% and rainfall between 0 and 0.14 mm. Extreme high humidity (96%) and trace rainfall (0.02 mm) were associated with 2.06 (95%CI 1.35–3.14), lag 0–17 day, and 1.30 (95%CI 1.01–1.67), lag 0–26 days, relative risks of hospitalizations, relative to 60% and no rain, respectively.
Conclusions: High temperatures, high RH and light rainfall are positively associated with Salmonella hospitalizations. The very strong association with temperatures implies that hotter days will lead to increases in Salmonella morbidity in the absence of other changes, and the public health implications of this could be exacerbated by global climate change.

International Journal of Biometeorology, 2017

Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is an enterovirus-induced infectious disease, mainly affecti... more Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is an enterovirus-induced infectious disease, mainly affecting children under 5 years old. Outbreaks of HFMD in recent years indicate the disease interacts with both the weather and season. This study aimed to investigate the seasonal association between HFMD and weather variation in Chongqing, China. Generalized additive models and distributed lag non-linear models based on a maximum lag of 14 days, with negative binomial distribution assumed to account for overdispersion, were constructed to model the association between reporting HFMD cases from 2009 to 2014 and daily mean temperature, relative humidity, total rainfall and sun duration, adjusting for trend, season, and day of the week. The year-round temperature and relative humidity, rainfall in summer, and sun duration in winter were all significantly associated with HFMD. An inverted-U relationship was found between mean temperature
and HFMD above 19 °C in summer, with a maximum morbidity at 27 °C, while the risk increased linearly with the temperature in winter. A hockey-stick association was found for relative humidity in summer with increasing risks over 60%. Heavy rainfall, relative to no rain, was found to be associated with reduced HFMD risk in summer and 2 h of sunshine
could decrease the risk by 21% in winter. The present study showed meteorological variables were differentially associated with HFMD incidence in two seasons. Short-term weather variation surveillance and forecasting could be employed as an early indicator for potential HFMDoutbreaks.

PloS One, 2016

Background Hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) is an emerging enterovirus-induced infectious dise... more Background
Hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) is an emerging enterovirus-induced infectious disease for which the environmental risk factors promoting disease circulation remain inconclusive. This study aims to quantify the association of daily weather variation with hospitalizations for HFMD in Hong Kong, a subtropical city in China.

Methods
A time series of daily counts of HFMD public hospital admissions from 2008 through 2011 in Hong Kong was regressed on daily mean temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, solar radiation and total rainfall, using a combination of negative binomial generalized additive
models and distributed lag non-linear models, adjusting for trend, season, and day of week.

Results
There was a positive association between temperature and HFMD, with increasing trends from 8 to 20°C and above 25°C with a plateau in between. A hockey-stick relationship of relative humidity with HFMD was found, with markedly increasing risks over 80%. Moderate rainfall and stronger wind and solar radiation were also found to be associated with more admissions.

Conclusions
The present study provides quantitative evidence that short-term meteorological variations could be used as early indicators for potential HFMD outbreaks. Climate change is likely to lead to a substantial increase in severe HFMD cases in this subtropical city in the absence
of further interventions.