Frostbite amputations reached new high in Edmonton, decreased in Calgary last winter
CBC
The number of amputations due to frostbite in Edmonton reached 110 last winter, the highest level in more than a decade, according to new data obtained by CBC News.
But Calgary marked its second consecutive winter of declining frostbite amputations, counting roughly one-third of Edmonton's procedures last fiscal year.
The frostbite amputation numbers mark a notable shift after years of Alberta's two major centres following similar trends.
It is not clear what caused the sharp divergence.
But doctors and homeless advocates point to two key differences between the two cities that may have played a role: Edmonton's aggressive encampment eviction policy, and the use of a more assertive frostbite treatment protocol in Calgary's emergency departments.
"I do think that houselessness and substance abuse are certainly contributors to it, but I think there's multiple things that may be contributing," said Dr. Scott MacLean, an emergency physician at Edmonton's Royal Alexandra Hospital.
According to data from Alberta Health Services, the Edmonton health zone saw 110 amputations with a diagnosis of frostbite during the fiscal year of 2023-24.
That's up from 71 the previous year, and surpasses the previous record of 91 amputations in 2021-22.
The Calgary zone counted roughly one-third of Edmonton's numbers last year.
The health zones include areas well beyond the two cities. Banff and Claresholm are in the Calgary zone, while the Edmonton zone includes Morinville and Evansburg.
AHS does not release health statistics between one and nine on privacy grounds, arguing that an individual could potentially be identified from such a small group.
Because Calgary had one month in the past fiscal year where the number of frostbite amputations was less than 10 but greater than zero, the annual total is only known to be between 32 and 40.
The sharp divergence between Edmonton and Calgary is unusual, as data going back to 2011 shows that the two cities have largely followed the same trends without any significant difference in annual numbers.
Reasons for the discrepancy are not clear.
Run 3 Space | Play Space Running Game
Traffic Jam 3D | Online Racing Game
Duck Hunt | Play Old Classic Game
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that the United States will impose "very severe tariffs" on Russia in 50 days if there is no deal to stop the war in Ukraine.
Parts of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) are under an air quality warning on Monday alongside an ongoing heat warning in the region, Environment Canada says.
A thunderstorm hit Alberta Sunday evening, pelting Calgary and the surrounding area with hail.
Tonya Ruby credits her 27-year-old son's speech language pathologist for the progress he's made in his recovery from a traumatic brain injury.
A Sudbury, Ont., man says he's disappointed that the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario won't hold a hearing on his complaint regarding the need for 24-hour public access to washrooms for people living on the street.
Late last year, multiple tenants in small apartment buildings around Halifax got similar letters from their new landlord, stating their leases would soon be terminated. But no reasons were given.
After paying the wrong power bill for more than four years and six months after discovering the unusual error, a Moncton man is still waiting for his refund.
The majority of Quebec residents had their power back Monday morning after a strong storm swept across the province Sunday, knocking down power lines and flooding major intersections and buildings.
Manitoba is looking to expand the infrastructure it has to monitor air quality, a step experts say is important to better map pollution and its long-term health effects worsened by smoke billowing from wildfires.
The senior lead physician of a Saskatchewan Medical Association program that provides help for rural doctors is speaking out on the challenges they face, after a number of temporary rural emergency room closures forced by a shortage of medical professionals in the province.
Five months into a job action that has brought public transit in the Cowichan Valley to a halt, frustration and anxiety are mounting and locals say it's taken a toll on the lives of low-income residents and has cost some their jobs.
A heat warning is in effect for Hamilton, Niagara, Brant and area with humid weather expected to blanket the region for most of the week.
Canadian travel to the United States has dropped in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff threats.