Perspectives on the Health Effects of Hurricanes: A Review and Challenges

Samantha L. Waddell, Dushyantha T. Jayaweera, Mehdi Mirsaeidi, John C. Beier and Naresh Kumar
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Samantha L. Waddell: Case Western University, Cleveland, OH 44236, USA
Dushyantha T. Jayaweera: Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA
Mehdi Mirsaeidi: Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care, Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA
John C. Beier: Division of Environmental Health Sciences, Department of Public Health Sciences, Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA
Naresh Kumar: Division of Environmental Health, Department of Public Health Sciences, Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 5, 1-18

Abstract: Hurricanes are devastating natural disasters which dramatically modify the physical landscape and alter the socio-physical and biochemical characteristics of the environment, thus exposing the affected communities to new environmental stressors, which persist for weeks to months after the hurricane. This paper has three aims. First, it conceptualizes potential direct and indirect health effects of hurricanes and provides an overview of factors that exacerbate the health effects of hurricanes. Second, it summarizes the literature on the health impact of hurricanes. Finally, it examines the time lag between the hurricane (landfall) and the occurrence of diseases. Two major findings emerge from this paper. Hurricanes are shown to cause and exacerbate multiple diseases, and most adverse health impacts peak within six months following hurricanes. However, chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease and mental disorders, continue to occur for years following the hurricane impact.

Keywords: health impacts; hurricanes; environmental stressors; health impact persistence; time-lagged health effects of hurricanes (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:5:p:2756-:d:513310

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