Global Burden of Disease
The Global Burden of Disease (GBD) project has set itself the task of quantifying deaths, illness, disability and risk factors; divided according to regions and population groups. This information makes it possible to weigh important information that can be used by policy makers to set priorities.
background
The GBD study was launched in 1992 by the Harvard School of Public Health (at Harvard University ), the World Health Organization, and the World Bank . It quantifies and examines 135 diseases and disabilities and uses this data to try to understand the causes of mortality and diseases worldwide. The aim is to use this data to create prognoses that will allow a global improvement in health.
The Disability-Adjusted Life Year ( DALY ) was introduced as a unit of measurement for 'quality of life' - a negative disability index that describes a low quality of life with high values. The DALY measures health gaps. It describes the difference between an actual situation and an ideal situation in which each person lives in full health up to the age that corresponds to the standard values of life expectancy. This standard life expectancy is based on life tables at birth at 80 years for men and 82.5 years for women. The lifetime lived with a disability and the lifetime lost through premature death is combined in DALY: the years of life lost (YLL) essentially correspond to the number of deaths multiplied by the remaining life expectancy at the age at which the Death occurs prematurely.
Using a comprehensible and standardized approach, quantifying the burden of disease helps to define priorities for improving the health of the population. However, information on mortality, risk factors and disease burden should be complemented by research on cost-effectiveness and interventions, and on socio-economic and cultural factors and preferences.