Introduction: Since 1993 Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) has been the most reliable indicator for the Global Burden of Diseases (GBD) as it takes into account the impact of premature death and disability. Thanks to large-scale GBD studies the global scientific community and health policy makers today have access to strong evidence on global health trends and problems.
Aim: This report aims to analyze the trends in the leading causes and risk factors related to DALYs over the period 1990-2015.
Materials and Methods: Content analysis of published data on GBD studies has been applied to monitor the changes in the ranking of leading causes and risk factors related to DALYs on a global and regional scale. The data and trends are presented in multiple tables and graphs.
Results: Significant increase of non-communicable diseases as a cause of DALYs has been established: ischemic heart disease and cerebrovascular disease have moved from 4th and 5th to 1st and 2nd place accordingly; lower back and neck pain - from 12th to 4th place; the number of DALYs due to sense organ diseases has increased by 64.4%. Road injuries are already among the 10 leading causes. The global burden of lower respiratory tract infections, premature births, HIV/AIDS and diarrheal diseases has declined. Significant changes have occurred in the ranking of risk factors for DALYs.
Conclusion: The increasing burden of chronic non-communicable diseases should be the focus of future researches in order to implement adequate public health policies to reduce the years of life lost due to preventable causes of death and disability.
