Cause-specific heat-related mortality in Rio de Janeiro city: Comparing exposure metrics and the role of exposure duration

This study gathers mortality data by 17 causes of death in Rio, over a 12.5-year period (2012–2024). We use Distributed Lag Nonlinear Models to assess the relationship between heat exposure and mortality among younger (0–64 years) and elderly (65+ years) age groups, comparing temperature and heat index as exposure metrics.