Subarachnoid Haemorrhage Incidence Pattern Analysis with Circular Statistics

Abstract

Knowledge about biological rhythms of diseases may not only help in understanding the pathophysiology of diseases but can also help health service policy makers and emergency department directors to allocate resources efficiently. Aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) has high rates of morbidity and mortality. The incidence of SAH has been attributed to patient-related factors such as characteristics of aneurysms, smoking, and hypertension. There are studies showing that the incidence of aneurysmal SAH appears to behave in periodic fashions over long time periods. However, there are inconsistencies in the literature regarding the impact of chronobiological factors such as circadian, seasonal, and lunar cycle factors on the occurrence of SAH. In this study, we focused on the analysis of a temporal pattern of SAH (infradian rhythms) with a novel approach using circular statistical methods. We aimed to see whether there is a circular pattern for the occurrence of SAH at all and if so, whether it can be related to known temporal patterns based on available literature. Our study did not support the notion that aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhages occur on any specific day in a cycle with specific lengths up to 365 days including specific weekdays, full moon, equinoxes, and solstices. Hence, we found no relationship between SAH incidence and timing. Study in larger populations using similar circular statistical methods is suggested.