Seasonality and association with climate factors of peritonsillar, retropharyngeal, and parapharyngeal abscesses in Korea

Background: Deep neck space abscesses are an important medical problem but the extent of their seasonality is not yet fully understood. Thus, we aimed to examine the seasonality of deep neck space abscesses and define the associated climate factors using a nationwide, population-based, cross‐sectional data. Methods Korean National Health Insurance-derived database with records from January 2010 to December 2019 was utilized in this study. We identified patients with peritonsillar, retropharyngeal, and parapharyngeal abscesses who were assigned the following diagnostic codes as a principal or first additional diagnosis: The International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-10-CM) codes J36 (peritonsillar abscess), J39.0, and J39.1 (retropharyngeal and parapharyngeal abscess and other abscess of the pharynx). We calculated the seasonal ratio as the ratio of the highest to the lowest number of patients per each month to assess the degree of seasonality for each studied condition. In addition, climate data points corresponding to each month were obtained. Thus, we analyzed correlations between the monthly patient numbers for each disease and various climate-related factors. Results We detected seasonal variations in the number of peritonsillar, retropharyngeal, and parapharyngeal abscesses, which were highest in winter-to-spring and lowest in summer. Peritonsillar abscesses were strongly correlated with average temperature, ground temperature, relative humidity, precipitation, daily temperature range, and particulate matter < 10µm (PM10). Retropharyngeal and parapharyngeal abscesses were linked to similar climate factors but with sunlight rate instead of PM10. Conclusion This large population-based study highlights a clear seasonality and climate relevance in patients with deep neck space abscesses. Further studies exploring detailed demographic factors associated with the incidence of deep neck space abscesses are required to better characterize these conditions.