The DOI matches its Crossref record; 173 of the 173 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Health Effects of Drought: a Systematic Review of the Evidence
Open accessAbstract
Introduction. Climate change projections indicate that droughts will become more intense in the 21 century in some areas of the world. The El Niño Southern Oscillation is associated with drought in some countries, and forecasts can provide advance warning of the increased risk of adverse climate conditions. The most recent available data from EMDAT estimates that over 50 million people globally were affected by drought in 2011. Documentation of the health effects of drought is difficult, given the complexity in assigning a beginning/end and because effects tend to accumulate over time. Most health impacts are indirect because of its link to other mediating circumstances like loss of livelihoods. Methods. The following databases were searched: MEDLINE; CINAHL; Embase; PsychINFO, Cochrane Collection. Key references from extracted papers were hand-searched, and advice from experts was sought for further sources of literature. Inclusion criteria for papers summarised in tables include: explicit link made between drought as exposure and human health outcomes; all study designs/methods; all countries/contexts; any year of publication. Exclusion criteria include: drought meaning shortage unrelated to climate; papers not published in English; studies on dry/arid climates unless drought was noted as an abnormal climatological event. No formal quality evaluation was used on papers meeting inclusion criteria. Results. 87 papers meeting the inclusion criteria are summarised in tables. Additionally, 59 papers not strictly meeting the inclusion criteria are used as supporting text in relevant parts of the results section. Main categories of findings include: nutrition-related effects (including general malnutrition and mortality, micronutrient malnutrition, and anti-nutrient consumption); water-related disease (including E coli, cholera and algal bloom); airborne and dust-related disease (including silo gas exposure and coccidioidomycosis); vector borne disease (including malaria, dengue and West Nile Virus); mental health effects (including distress and other emotional consequences); and other health effects (including wildfire, effects of migration, and damage to infrastructure). Conclusions. The probability of drought-related health impacts varies widely and largely depends upon drought severity, baseline population vulnerability, existing health and sanitation infrastructure, and available resources with which to mitigate impacts as they occur. The socio-economic environment in which drought occurs influences the resilience of the affected population. Forecasting can be used to provide advance warning of the increased risk of adverse climate conditions and can support the disaster risk reduction process. Despite the complexities involved in documentation, research should continue and results should be shared widely in an effort to strengthen drought preparedness and response activities.
Overview
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The source backs part of the claim, not all of it — or backs it for a different population, condition or comparison.
In the citing paper
“Anthropogenic climate change increases the likelihood and severity of droughts,4,113,114 which can affect vector-borne and water-borne disease transmission, jeopardise water supply, food security, and livelihoods, and disrupt power generation and the transport of goods via inland waterways.115–117”
From The 2024 report of the Lancet Countdown on health and climate change: facing record-breaking threats from delayed action (2024) · cites this paper as [115]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredThe check wasn’t confident either way, so it gives no verdict — never disputed.
In the citing paper
“High ambient temperatures are associated with worse sleep quantity and quality. 101–106”
From The 2024 report of the Lancet Countdown on health and climate change: facing record-breaking threats from delayed action (2024) · cites this paper as [102]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredThe check wasn’t confident either way, so it gives no verdict — never disputed.
In the citing paper
“Extreme heat can affect human mental health outcomes across a continuum of severity, from subclinical to life-altering.102,142–147”
From The 2024 report of the Lancet Countdown on health and climate change: facing record-breaking threats from delayed action (2024) · cites this paper as [102]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Citations
Cites
Maternal and child undernutrition: global and regional exposures and health consequences
Black, R. E., Allen, L. H., Bhutta, Z. A., Caulfield, L. E., de Onis, M., Ezzati, M., Mathers, C., & Rivera, J. (2008) · The Lancet · doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(07)61690-0 · Cited by 6,443
Field, C. B., Barros, V. R., Stocker, T. F., Qin, D., Dokken, D. J., Ebi, K. L., Mastrandrea, M. D., Mach, K. J., Plattner, G., Allen, S., et al. (2012) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · Cited by 3,037
Death toll exceeded 70,000 in Europe during the summer of 2003
Robine, J.-M., Cheung, S. L. K., Le Roy, S., Van Oyen, H., Griffiths, C., Michel, J.-P., & Herrmann, F. R. (2007) · Comptes Rendus. Biologies · doi:10.1016/j.crvi.2007.12.001 · Cited by 2,127
Present and future arboviral threats
Weaver, S. C., & Reisen, W. K. (2009) · Antiviral Research · doi:10.1016/j.antiviral.2009.10.008 · Cited by 1,567
Soil Moisture–Atmosphere Interactions during the 2003 European Summer Heat Wave
Fischer, E. M., Seneviratne, S. I., Vidale, P. L., Lüthi, D., & Schär, C. (2007) · Journal of Climate · doi:10.1175/jcli4288.1 · Cited by 1,076
Global Health Impacts of Floods: Epidemiologic Evidence
Ahern, M., Kovats, S. R., Wilkinson, P., Few, R., & Matthies, F. (2005) · Epidemiologic Reviews · doi:10.1093/epirev/mxi004 · Cited by 859
Fatal microcystin intoxication in haemodialysis unit in Caruaru, Brazil
Pouria, S., de Andrade, A. D., Barbosa, J. E. D. L., Cavalcanti, R., Barreto, V., Ward, C. J., Preiser, W., Poon, G. K., Neild, G. H., & Codd, G. (1998) · The Lancet · doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(97)12285-1 · Cited by 811
Endemic selenium intoxication of humans in China
Yang, G.-H., Wang, S., Zhou, R., & Sun, S. (1983) · American Journal of Clinical Nutrition · doi:10.1093/ajcn/37.5.872 · Cited by 769
Annual Disaster Statistical Review 2015: The numbers and trends
Guha‐Sapir, D., Hoyois, P., Below, R., & Vanderveken, A. (2016) · Digital Access to Libraries · doi:10.13140/rg.2.2.10378.88001 · Cited by 687
Understanding and Attributing Climate Change
Hegerl, G. C., Zwiers, F. W., Braconnot, P., Gillett, N. P., Luo, Y., Orsini, J. A. M., Nicholls, N., Penner, J. E., Stott, P. A., Allen, M. R., et al. (2007) · Cited by 685
Flagged first, then by citations
Research works printed but not linked: 1
- [167]IPCC (2007) Climate Change 2007: Synthesis Report. Contribution of Working Groups I, II and III to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Core Writing Team, Pachauri, R.K and Reisinger, A. (eds.)]. IPCC, Geneva, Switzerland.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Whitmee, S., Haines, A., Beyrer, C., Boltz, F., Capon, A. G., de Souza Dias, B. F., Ezeh, A., Frumkin, H., Gong, P., Head, P., et al. (2015) · The Lancet · doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(15)60901-1 · Cited by 2,998
Watts, N., Amann, M., Arnell, N., Ayeb-Karlsson, S., Beagley, J., Belesova, K., Boykoff, M., Byass, P., Cai, W., Campbell-Lendrum, D., et al. (2021) · The Lancet · doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(20)32290-x · Cited by 1,943
The 2021 report of the Lancet Countdown on health and climate change: code red for a healthy future
Romanello, M., McGushin, A., Di Napoli, C., Drummond, P., Hughes, N., Jamart, L., Kennard, H., Lampard, P., Solano Rodriguez, B., Arnell, N., et al. (2021) · The Lancet · doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(21)01787-6 · Cited by 1,603
Romanello, M., Napoli, C. D., Green, C., Kennard, H., Lampard, P., Scamman, D., Walawender, M., Ali, Z., Ameli, N., Ayeb-Karlsson, S., et al. (2023) · The Lancet · doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(23)01859-7 · Cited by 1,275
Extreme Weather and Climate Change: Population Health and Health System Implications
Ebi, K. L., Vanos, J., Baldwin, J. W., Bell, J. E., Hondula, D. M., Errett, N. A., Hayes, K., Reid, C. E., Saha, S., Spector, J., et al. (2021) · Annual Review of Public Health · doi:10.1146/annurev-publhealth-012420-105026 · Cited by 1,213
Metadata
- Authors
- Stanke, C., Kerac, M., Prudhomme, C., Medlock, J., & Murray, V.
- Affiliations
- Health Protection Agency (GB)
- Public Health England (GB)
- UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (GB)
- Venue
- PLoS Currents
- Publisher
- Public Library of Science (PLoS)
- Published
- 2013
- Volume
- 5
- ISSN
- 2157-3999 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC3682759
- OpenAlex
- W2103312853
- Cited by
- 441
- References
- 170
- Citations by year
- 2026: 25 · 2025: 44 · 2024: 57 · 2023: 42 · 2022: 61 · 2021: 48 · 2020: 43 · 2019: 24 · 2018: 29 · 2017: 18 · 2016: 23 · 2015: 12 · 2014: 12 · 2013: 3
- FWCI
- 1.98
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Licence
- cc-by
- Locations
- PLoS Currents (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- NERC Open Research Archive (Natural Environment Research Council) (acceptedVersion)
- LSHTM Research Online (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine) (acceptedVersion)
- UCL Discovery (University College London) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Wellcome Trust (101113)
- National Institute for Health and Care Research (ACF-2008-18-010, CL-2012-18-005)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis › Climate Change and Health Impacts
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis › Public Health and Environmental Issues
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis › Air Quality and Health Impacts
- Keywords
- drought, climate change, ENSO, malnutrition, waterborne diseases, coccidioidomycosis, vector-borne diseases, malaria, dengue, West Nile virus, mental health, migration, disaster risk reduction, drought preparedness, population vulnerability
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
