Burden of Disease

Synonyms

Burden of illness; Cost of illness

Definition

The term burden of disease generally describes the total, cumulative consequences of a defined disease or a range of harmful diseases with respect to disabilities in a community. These consequences include health, social aspects, and costs to society. The gap between an ideal situation, where everyone lives free of disease and disability, and the cumulated current health status, is defined as the burden of disease.

In the 1990s, the World Health Organization (WHO), in co‐operation with Harvard University and the World bank, developed a methodological concept to quantify the global burden of disease; this was based to a large extent on statistical measurement of the disability‐adjusted life year (DALY). The DALY aggregates the time lost because of premature mortality and the time spent in a limited health state. Consequently, the DALYs for a defined disease or health condition are calculated as the sum of the years lost due to...