Worldwide mortality rates on decline

Mortality rates have decreased across all age groups worldwide during the last 5 decades, and deaths in children younger than 5 years decreased to less than 5 million for the first time.

However, these decreases are not uniform, and there remains significant diversity in certain components of age-specific mortality in some countries.

These are among the findings were recently published in the Lancet in a series of studies that make up the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016. More than 2,500 researchers from more than 130 countries and territories covering a broad spectrum of specialties examined 330 injuries, diseases and causes of death in 195 countries and territories during varying periods of time from 1970 to 2016.

“Our findings indicate people are living longer and, over the past decade, we identified substantial progress in driving down death rates from some of the world’s most pernicious diseases and conditions, such as under age 5 mortality and malaria,” Christopher Murray, MD, DPhil, director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, said in a press release. “Yet, despite this progress, we are facing a triad of trouble holding back many nations and communities — obesity, conflict and mental illness, including substance use disorders.”

According to the findings, each year between 1970 and 2016, the rate of increase in female life expectancy at birth rose by 0.32 years vs. 0.29 years for men.

From 1990 to 2016, researchers found that metabolic risks, such as high fasting plasma glucose and high BMI, displayed significant increases in causing disease burden, while household air pollution and child growth failure showed the most significant declines. During that same period, total global disability adjusted life years stayed largely unchanged, with decreases in communicable, maternal, neonatal and nutritional disease offset by increases in noncommunicable diseases.

Furthermore, 2016 results revealed:

•Noncommunicable diseases caused 72.3% of all deaths, with most attributed to ischemic heart disease; nutritional, neonatal, maternal and communicable diseases caused 19.3% of deaths; and injuries caused 8.4% of deaths.

•Low back pain, migraine, hearing loss, iron-deficiency anemia and major depressive disorder were the five leading causes of years lived with disability.

•There were 1.1 billion people with substance use and mental health disorders.

Additional report findings include 7.1 million deaths attributed to tobacco; poor diet was linked to 18.8% of deaths; and deaths from terrorism, firearms and conflict have increased worldwide.

The researchers also stated that 27 countries, most of which are low income, do not have complete data on causes of death, underscoring the need to improve data quality and collection. – by Janel Miller

References:

GBD 2016 Mortality Collaborators. Lancet. 2017; 390:1084-1150.

GBD 2016 Causes of Death Collaborators. Lancet. 2017; 390:1151-1210.

GBD 2016 Disease and Injury Incidence and Prevalence Collaborators. Lancet. 2017;390:1211-1259.

GBD 2016 DALYs and HALE Collaborators. Lancet. 2017; 390:1260-1344.

GBD 2016 Risk Factors Collaborators. Lancet. 2017; 390:1345-1422.