Childhood Diseases Remain Major Threat

Despite welcome progress, childhood diseases remain major threat in sub-Saharan Africa, a new report published by the World Bank and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) in Washington revealed Wednesday.

A release issued here says children in sub-Saharan Africa are now less likely to die from diarrhea and pneumonia, but these illnesses are still common causes of childhood death and sickness in most African countries.

The report reveals that loss of health due to diarrheal diseases dropped by 34% between 1990 and 2010, while lower respiratory infections (LRIs) such as pneumonia dropped by 22%, and protein-energy malnutrition was down by 17% respectively.

Several countries documented striking progress, with Malawi reducing diarrheal diseases by 65%, Burundi decreasing LRIs by 44%, and Benin reducing measles by 84% during this time, the report said.

Malaria and HIV/AIDS were the leading causes of premature death and disability in 2010 for the region. But in some countries, there has been significant progress in recent years.

Between 2000 and 2010, Rwanda recorded a 56% decrease in the rate of healthy years of life lost from malaria, while Botswana cut the rate of premature death and disability from HIV/AIDS by 66%.

“These are some of the findings from the new report The Global Burden of Disease: Generating Evidence, Guiding Policy – Sub-Saharan Africa Regional Edition, published today by the World Bank and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME),” the release said.

The Director of Health, Nutrition, and Population at the World Bank Group, Timothy Evans, said the rapid shifts in disease burden place poor people in low- and middle-income countries at high risk of not having access to appropriate services and incurring payments for healthcare that push them deeper into poverty.

Timothy is further quoted in the release as saying, “The data in these new reports are critical inputs to the efforts of policymakers in countries towards universal health coverage that aim to improve the health of their people, communities, and economies.”

The report also finds that nutritional deficiencies were the leading cause for disability in childhood, mental and behavioral disorders, accounted for the most illness during adolescence and young adulthood, while musculoskeletal disorders were the largest drivers of disability in adulthood.

In the region’s upper- and middle-income countries, non-communicable diseases emerged as a significant health threat. From 1990 to 2010, substantial increases in premature mortality and disability were recorded from stroke, up by 31%; depression, up by 61%, diabetes, up by 88%, and ischemic heart disease or coronary artery disease, up by 37%.

Amidst the region’s rapid economic growth, the report said early death and illness from road injuries increased by 76% between 1990 and 2010, while health loss from interpersonal violence also climbed during this time, particularly in The Democratic Republic of Congo and Lesotho.

Dr. Christopher Murray, IHME Director and one of the lead authors of the GBD study said, “The health landscape in sub-Saharan Africa is changing in unexpected ways.”

“Addressing chronic disease and certain communicable diseases will continue to be important, but people in sub-Saharan Africa are dealing with a greater range of illnesses today that aren’t fatal but are definitely disabling,” he said.