Burden of type 2 diabetes mellitus and its risk factors in North Africa and the Middle East, 1990-2019: findings from the Global Burden of Disease study 2019.

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) in the North Africa and Middle East region is alarmingly high, prompting us to investigate the burden and factors contributing to it through the GBD study. Additionally, there is a lack of knowledge about the epidemiological status of T2DM in this region, so our aim is to provide a comprehensive overview of the burden of T2DM and its associated risk factors. METHODS: Using data from the 2019 Global Burden of Disease Study, we calculated the attributable burden of T2DM for each of the 21 countries in the region for the years 1990 and 2019. This included prevalence, mortality, disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), and risk factors. RESULTS: Between 1990 and 2019, there was a significant increase in the age-standardized incidence (79.6%; 95% Uncertainty Interval: 75.0 to 84.5) and prevalence (85.5%; [80.8 to 90.3]) rates of T2DM per 100,000 populations. The age-standardized mortality rate (1.7%; [-10.4 to 14.9]), DALYs (31.2%; [18.3 to 42.2]), and years lived with disability (YLDs) (82.6%; [77.2 to 88.1]) also increased during this period. Modifiable risk factors, such as high body mass index (56.4%; [42.8 to 69.8]), low physical activity (15.5%; [9.0 to 22.8]), and ambient particulate matter pollution (20.9%; [15.2 to 26.2]), were the main contributors to the number of deaths. CONCLUSION: The burden of T2DM, in terms of mortality, DALYs, and YLDs, continues to rise in the region. The incidence rate of T2DM has increased in many areas. The burden of T2DM attributed to modifiable risk factors continues to grow in most countries. Targeting these modifiable risk factors could effectively reduce the growth and disease burden of T2DM in the region.

Burden of autism spectrum disorders in North Africa and Middle East from 1990 to 2019: A systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019.

INTRODUCTION: Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) encompass a range of neurodevelopmental disorders that affect the patient's communication and behavior. There are some reports about the increasing prevalence of ASD in recent decades, mostly due to the improvement in diagnosis and screening status. Few studies suggested a lower prevalence of ASD in North Africa and Middle East compared to more developed regions. The aim of this study is to provide a comprehensive outlook of ASD in the region. METHODS: We used Global Burden of Disease (GBD) data from 1990 to 2019 in North Africa and Middle East, which is one of the seven super regions of the GBD categorization. In this study, we reported the epidemiologic indices, including prevalence, incidence, and years lived with disability (YLDs) for ASD in the 21 countries of the super region. We also compared these indices between the countries based on their sociodemographic index (SDI) which was calculated according to income per capita, mean education, and fertility rate. RESULTS: Age-standardized prevalence rate (ASPR) of ASD in the region is 304.4 (95% uncertainty interval 251.2-366.1) per 100,000 in 2019 with less than one percentage change since 1990. Age-standardized YLDs and incidence rates were 46.4 (30.4-67.5) and 7.7 (6.3-9.3) per 100,000 in 2019. The ASPR was 2.9 times greater in males compared to females in 2019. The highest age-standardized prevalence, incidence, and YLD rates among the countries were seen in Iran in 2019 (370.3, 9.3, and 56.4 per 100,000, respectively). High SDI countries had higher age-standardized YLDs rates compared to the other countries of the region. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, the trends of age-standardized epidemiologic indices remained approximately steady through the years 1990-2019 in the region. Though, there was a wide discrepancy between the countries of the region. The difference of YLDs among the countries of this region is related to the SDI of the countries. Monetary and public awareness status are the SDI factors that may affect the quality of life of ASD patients in the region. This study provides valuable information for governments and health systems to implement policies for maintaining the improving trend, achieving more timely diagnosis, and bettering the supportive actions in this region.

Global, regional, and national burden and quality of care index of liver cirrhosis by cause from global burden of disease 1990-2019.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Cirrhosis and other chronic liver diseases are complex disorders with a known burden. Currently health systems have different approaches to dealing with this issue. The objective of this study is to describe the burden attributed to and quality of care for cirrhosis and other chronic liver diseases. METHODS: Data of cirrhosis and other chronic liver diseases extracted from Global-Burden-of-Diseases 2019. Four indicators, including mortality to incidence ratio, prevalence to incidence ratio, disability-adjusted-life-years (DALYs) to prevalence ratio, and years-of-life-lost (YLLs) to years-lived-with-disability (YLDs) ratio, were defined and combined by the principal-components-analysis to construct the Quality-of-Care-Index (QCI). RESULTS: The global QCI of cirrhosis increased from 71.0 in 1990 to 79.3 in 2019. The QCI showed a favorable situation in higher SDI countries compared with lower SDI countries, with a QCI of 86.8 in high SDI countries and 60.1 in low SDI countries. The highest QCI was found in Western Pacific Region (90.2), and the lowest was for African Region (60.4). Highest QCI belonged to the 50-54 age group (99.5), and the lowest was for the 30.34 age group (70.9). Among underlying causes of cirrhosis, the highest QCI belonged to alcohol use, followed by hepatitis C and NAFLD with QCIs of 86.1, 85.3, and 81.1. CONCLUSIONS: There was a considerable variation in the QCI of cirrhosis and other chronic liver diseases. Countries with low QCI, mainly located in developing regions, need organized action to control the burden of cirrhosis and its underlying causes and improve their quality of care.

Regional burden of chronic kidney disease in North Africa and Middle East during 1990-2019; Results from Global Burden of Disease study 2019.

Objectives: Updating burden data of chronic kidney disease (CKD) as one of the most prevalent non-communicable diseases is essential for proper provision of healthcare by policymakers. We aimed to estimate the burden of CKD and its attributed burden in North Africa and Middle East region (NAME) during 1990-2019. Methods: The CKD-related Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2019 estimates were extracted from Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) website. Results: In 2019, 2,034,879 new CKD cases (95% Uncertainty interval 1,875,830 to 2,202,724) with an age-standardized incidence rate of 447.5 (415.1 to 482.8) per 100,000 was reported, showing a 70.9% increase in the past 30 years. CKD led to 111,812 deaths (96,421 to 130,853) with an age-standardized rate of 30.4 (26.3 to 35.4) per 100,000. The highest increase and decrease in the mortality rate were estimated in Morocco 21.8% (-8.9 to 51.6) and Kuwait -41.5% (-51.2 to -29.1). In 2019, CKD was responsible for 744.4 (646.1 to 851.8) age-standardized disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), mostly contributed to "other and unspecified causes" [237.2 (191.1 to 288.4)], type 2 diabetes [205.9 (162.4 to 253.6)], and hypertension [203.3 (165.8 to 243)]. An increase was noted in DALYs from ages 25-29 and surged with an accelerating pattern by age. Kidney dysfunction, high systolic blood pressure, and high body mass index ranked as the top three risk factors for the disorder. Conclusions: Our study raised an alarm regarding the increasing CKD burden in NAME. There is an urgency to deal with hypertension and overweight/obesity at the primary care level, implementing CKD screening for at-risk groups, and facilitating the accessibility to appropriate treatments.

National and subnational burden of stroke in Iran from 1990 to 2019.

BACKGROUND: Data on the burden of stroke and changing trends at national and subnational levels are necessary for policymakers to allocate recourses appropriately. This study presents estimates of the stroke burden from 1990 to 2019 using the results of the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2019 study. METHODS: For the GBD 2019, verbal autopsy and vital registration data were used to estimate stroke mortality. Cause-specific mortality served as the basis for estimating incidence, prevalence, and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs). The burden attributable to stroke risk factors was calculated by a comparative risk assessment. Decomposition analysis was applied to determine the contribution of population aging, population growth, and changes in the age-specific incidence rates. RESULTS: In 2019, the number of prevalent cases, incident cases, and deaths due to stroke in Iran were 963,512; 102,778; and 40,912, respectively. The age-standardized incidence rate (ASIR) and the age-standardized death rate (ASDR) decreased from 1990 to 2019. Of national stroke ASDRs in 2019, 44.7% (35.7-54.7%) were attributable to hypertension and 28.8% (15.2-57.4) to high fasting plasma glucose. At the subnational level, the trend of the stroke incidence and mortality rate decreased in all provinces. Stroke was responsible for 4.48% of total DALYs in 2019 (3.38% due to ischemic stroke, 0.87% due to intracerebral hemorrhage, and 0.22% due to subarachnoid hemorrhage). CONCLUSION: ASIR and ASDR of stroke are decreasing nationally and subnationally; however, the number of incident cases and deaths are increasing in all SDI quintiles, possibly due to population growth.