Clinical cosmobiology: distribution of deaths during 180 months and cosmophysical activity. The Lithuanian study, 1990–2004 The role of cosmic rays

The aim of this study is a next step of our previous, initial, publications – to explore the links between monthly death number (total, and for the major death causes and each gender) with levels of monthly cosmophysical activity in a long-term, big cohort observation. Methods. Death number during 180 consecutive months from the National Registry of Lithuania for years 1990–2004 were studied. A total of 630 205 deaths were analyzed (333 035 males). For comparison, monthly indices of solar activity, geomagnetic activity, and cosmic ray activity and year and month (1–12) of the study were used. The cosmophysical data were obtained from space research centers in the USA, Russia, and Finland. Statistics. Pearson correlation coefficients (r) and their probabilities (P) between compared parameters were calculated. A multivariate model of prediction was designed. Results. It was a significant correlation between total monthly death number and indices of cosmic ray activity and, inverse, of solar activity; in men stronger than in women. Monthly geomagnetic activity was significantly correlated with traffic accidents, ischemic heart disease/ stroke ratio, suicide victim number. Deaths from stroke, noncardiovascular causes, suicide, traffic accidents were related with cosmic ray activity and, inverse, with solar activity. Relationship of ischemic heart disease/stroke ratio to year of observation showed additional evidence for the growing role of stroke in cardiovascular mortality. Conclusions. Monthly death number is linked to cosmic ray activity, and inverse, to solar activity. Central place of stroke-related deaths in cardiovascular mortality is emerging. Geomagnetic activity, in monthly account, plays a relatively minor role. We presume that forces antagonistic to cosmic ray activity, like solar activity and geomagnetic activity, can prevent some negative biologic effects of cosmic ray