UK lag in early deaths
pharmafile | March 5, 2013 | News story | Medical Communications, Sales and Marketing | Gates, Lancet, UK
The UK is lagging behind other developed nations when it comes to preventing early deaths from a number of diseases, according to new data.
The study in The Lancet is by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington and forms part of wider data on the global burden of disease.
Funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the data from 1990 and 2010 shows how UK outcomes compare with 15 countries in the European Union, plus Australia, Canada, Norway and the US.
The authors say the UK’s performance in terms of premature mortality “is persistently and significantly below the mean” of these and needs ‘additional concerted action’.
In terms of mortality and disability, overall health has actually improved ‘substantially’ in the UK over these 20 years, with life expectancy rising by 4.2 years.
But premature death rates are worsening in men and women aged 20-54 years, in part due to factors such as drug abuse.
The UK is doing relatively well on years of life lost (YLLs) for diabetes, liver cancer and chronic kidney disease – but significantly worse than other countries in heart disease, COPD, respiratory infections, breast cancer and other cardiovascular and circulatory disorders.
The leading risk factors in the UK are smoking, high blood pressure and obesity, the report says.
Further progress in premature mortality in areas such as cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and cancers “will probably require improved public health, prevention, early intervention and treatment activities”.
So although life expectancy has risen and overall health has improved over the last two decades or so, there remain major problems.
Health secretary Jeremy Hunt said there needed to be action across what he called the ‘five big killer diseases’ – cancer, heart, stroke, respiratory and liver disease – from which more than 150,000 people under 75 die every year.
“Despite real progress in cutting deaths we remain a poor relative to our global cousins on many measures of health, something I want to change,” he said.
“For too long we have been lagging behind and I want the reformed health system to take up this challenge and turn this shocking underperformance around,” Hunt added.
The Department of Health’s new CVD outcomes strategy could save 30,000 lives by 2020, he suggested.
CVD represents about 30% of all deaths in 2011. “Today’s proposals for those with CVD will bring better care, longer and healthier lives and better patient experience – which we must all strive to deliver,” Hunt said.
The strategy recommends:
• reducing premature mortality rates for CVD by improving prevention, diagnosis and treatment, bringing all services up to the standards of the best
• managing CVD as a single family of diseases and developing a standardised template for community and hospital care
• supporting better identification of families or individuals at high risk of CVD and improve its management in primary care
• improving intelligence, monitoring and research into CVD and publishing comparative data on the quality of care provided for patients with CVD.
Adam Hill
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