Seasonal Variation of Epistaxis in Germany.

AIM: The goal of the present study was to analyze the seasonal variation of epistaxis in ear, nose, and throat (ENT) practices in Germany in 2016.

METHODS

The present study sample included patients who received a first epistaxis diagnosis from physicians in 114 ENT practices in Germany between January 2016 and December 2016. The number of epistaxis patients per practice was calculated for each month. A logistic regression model, adjusted for age and sex, was used to calculate the association between epistaxis diagnosis and the month.

RESULTS

The authors found a total of 15,523 patients with epistaxis in 114 ENT practices. Of these patients, 55.9% were men and the mean age was 47.8 ± 27.6 years. The highest number of epistaxis patients was found in February (14.89 patients per practice) and the lowest in August (7.22 patients per practice). The age- and sex-adjusted risk of epistaxis was significantly higher in the months of February (OR = 1.32), March (OR = 1.37), April (OR = 1.34), May (OR = 1.35), and December (OR = 1.33) compared with August.

CONCLUSIONS

The presentation of patients with epistaxis at German ENT practices shows a marked seasonal variation with a low in the summer, an increase in fall and winter, and a peak in February, March, and April.