Adaptive behaviors during heat wave among residents of Shenzhen city, 2014

Objective To study the status of adaptive behavior during high temperature season and heat wave period among residents of Shenzhen city and to analyze the relationship between adaptive behaviors and heatstroke among the residents.Methods During November 2014,a household face-to-face questionnaire survey was conducted among 623 community residents selected with stratified random sampling in Shenzhen city to collect information on demography,awareness about heat wave,spontaneous adaptive behaviors during heat wave,and whether having heatstroke during previous one year.We used chi-square test to compare differences among various resident groups and unconditional logistic regression to analyze the relationship between adaptive behaviors and heatstroke among the residents.Results Among the residents,the rate of awareness about heat wave was 69.5% and the average score for heat wave risk assessment was 3.53±1.05.Almost all the residents (621) people adopted at least one adaptive practice during a heat wave period and drinking plenty of water was the most frequently used adaptive practice,which was reported by 93.1% of the residents.The results of logistic regression showed that taking air-conditioned buses for traffic,drinking plenty of water,wearing light color clothes,and limiting outdoor activities were protective factors for heatstroke during a heat wave period among the residents (P<0.05 for all).Conclusion Both the awareness about heat wave and the proportion of adopting adaptive practice spontaneously were high among the community residents in Shenzhen city during heat wave period and some of the adaptive practices may contribute to the prevention of heatstroke.