about burden of disease

Governments across the world are facing increased health service costs. This is due to the ageing of the population, changes in the pattern of disease, greater demands for health services and the introduction of new and more expensive technologies. Quantifying the need for various health services, as well as the associated costs and benefits, is essential for the planning and development of public health policies.

Burden of disease is a specialised area of research that quantifies ill-health, by measuring and analysing the extent and causes of health problems. Together with evaluations of cost-effectiveness, burden of disease provides the information policy makers need to help them make decisions.

The MRC Burden of Disease Research Unit has developed a focused research programme that is contributing to burden of disease information for South Africa and assisting policy makers who are responding to the health needs of the nation.

A major project of the Burden of Disease Research Unit was the national 2000 SA Burden of Disease Study, which provides initial estimates of disease burden for the year 2000 as well as Provincial mortality estimates. The study has generated estimates of the causes of death and disability that were experienced in that year. Selected risk factors are also being assessed to measure their individual contributions to the overall burden of disease in a Comparative Risk Factor Assessment (CRA).

News

• The Global Burden of Disease Study is seeking worldwide information on how people value different states of health. The goal is to collect responses from at least 50,000 people worldwide to make the data as robust and credible as possible. The survey takes 15-20 minutes to do and can be accessed at www.gbdsurvey.org. The MRC Burden of Disease Research Unit encourages South Africans to contribute to the online survey that was launched on 26 July.