探究溫度與濕度對亞洲三個不同城市痛風盛行之趨勢分析

A Trend Study of Search Interest in“Gout＂in Three Different Asian Cities: A Discussion of Temperature and Humidity

目的：從過去研究得知痛風與環境、飲食及疾病相關等結果，其中最主要的是環境因子。本研究探討真實氣候資料與網路使用者關鍵字搜尋的相關程度，以預測痛風即將盛行的時期。方法：本研究應用市場行銷分析關鍵字搜尋熱門度「趨勢分析方法」，採用Google Trends工具，從2009年01月01日至2018年12月31日蒐集網路使用者關鍵字搜尋量，針對熱帶地區而氣候類型不同的三個亞洲城市（台北在亞熱帶、新加坡在熱帶雨林、新德里在熱帶季風），研究先搜尋相同期間各月份的實際氣候數據（溫度與濕度），找出與「痛風」及其相關字詞（尿酸、關節炎等）分別和溫溼度進行相關性的比較。結果：位處熱帶地區而氣候類型不同的城市，若整年溫度數據有高低變化，使用趨勢分析可有效預測該地區網路使用者搜尋痛風相關資訊的搜尋量，亦即較能預測痛風的盛行；然而，濕度的數據變化與資訊搜尋量則呈現低度負相關或甚至無相關性。結論：痛風是一個容易復發的疾病，是現代社會著名的慢性病，藉由網路宣導痛風保健資訊，包括如何飲食與運動等資訊都是必要的。

Objectives: Based on prior studies, gout was associated with environmental issues, diet and other diseases. Among those factors, environmental issues were critical. Therefore, this study is to explore the correlation between the actual climate data and the search volume of the terms used by network users. This study expects to predict the timing when the prevalence of gout is about to start. Methods: This study applies a marketing approach, trend analysis, to collect network users' keyword search volume of the term, gout, and its related terms (e.g., uric acid, arthritis) from January 01, 2009 to December 31, 2018 in three different Asian cities located in the same tropical but different types of climate zone (Taipei in subtropical, Singapore in tropical rainforest, and New Delhi in tropical monsoon). The monthly actual climate data (temperature and humidity) are also obtained within the same data collection time frame. Results: The cities having temperature fluctuation throughout the year are more able to predict the prevalence of gout by measuring the volume of their city network users' behaviours in searching for goat-related information; contrarily, there is no correlation, or a low and negative correlation is found between humidity and the information search volume among the network users in the cities in three different types of tropical climate zone. Conclusions: Gout is a disease which can easily recur, and it is considered as a chronic disease in the present modern society. It is critical to utilize different networks to disseminate healthcare information, including the diet and sports information, for preventing gout attacks.