New Delhi, Oct 13
Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) such as heart disease, stroke, and diabetes are the leading cause of mortality and disability worldwide, according to a new study published in the journal The Lancet on Monday.
The study, based on the latest analysis of Global Burden of Disease (GBD), and also presented at the World Health Summit in Berlin, showed that the causes of death are shifting from infectious to NCDs -- which now account for nearly two-thirds of the world's total mortality and morbidity.
Ischemic heart disease, stroke, and diabetes were identified as the leading causes of mortality and morbidity across the globe, including in India. This was followed by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lower respiratory infections, and neonatal disorders.
While diarrhoeal diseases were the leading cause of deaths in 1990, with an age-standardised mortality rate (ASMR) of 300.53 per lakh population, in 2023, ischaemic heart disease caused the maximum deaths, with an ASMR rate of 127.82 per lakh population.