TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Cold weather may be the reason there have been so many non-traumatic emergencies across Taiwan in the past two days, according to a cardiologist

According to data provided by the Hsinchu County Fire Bureau on Monday (Feb. 21), from Sunday to Monday, there were a total of six non-traumatic emergencies in the county, and all of them suffered out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, CNA reported. The patients ranged in age from 45 to 94.

While whether the recent cold snap is to blame for their health issues remains to be clarified, a doctor pointed out the correlation between cold weather and the onset of myocardial infarction.

Lin Yu-shen (林育伸), director of the cardiac intensive care unit at Ton-Yen General Hospital, told CNA that the peak of myocardial infarction onsets usually happens during cold weather. The acute myocardial infarction incident rate increases significantly when cold temperatures along with rainy and windy weather conditions linger for an extended period, Lin added.

When the human body is stimulated by coldness, the sympathetic nervous system becomes activated, and the body’s secretion of catecholamine increases, causing the blood vessels to contract and convulse and the heart rate to fasten. These are conditions that are conducive to angina or acute myocardial infarction, the doctor added.

He reminded people that if they feel symptoms such as left-sided chest pain, gasping for air, vertigo, palpitations, nausea, and dyspnea for unknown reasons, they should seek medical treatment immediately, per CNA.