Global Burden of Disease (GBD)
The Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study provides a comprehensive picture of mortality and disability across countries, time, age, and sex. It quantifies health loss from hundreds of diseases, injuries, and risk factors, so that health systems can be improved and disparities eliminated.
Key findings from GBD 2019
Our most recent GBD estimates were released in 2020, incorporating data through 2019. These findings provide new insights on underlying health before the COVID-19 pandemic, and quantify the challenge of protecting against further pandemic threats.
Health systems are ill-prepared for rapid rise in non-communicable diseases and disabilities.
In 1990, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) contributed to less than half of overall global health loss. But since 1990, the health loss has shifted toward a growing burden from NCDs and away from communicable, maternal, neonatal, and nutritional (CMNN) diseases.
Public health systems are failing to stem the effects of risk factors.
Risk factors account for almost half of the healthy years of life lost around the world. While overall years of life lost from risk factors have decreased since 1990, many behavioral and metabolic risks have worsened in recent years. Reducing exposure to these would have huge health benefits.
More ways to discover GBD
Review findings by disease, injury, or risk factor with our two-page factsheets.
Search results by location and get an overview of population health factors like life expectancy, fertility, and causes of death.
Analyze all GBD findings using our suite of data visualizations.
What’s new in GBD 2019?
Published in The Lancet in October 2020, GBD 2019 provides for the first time an independent estimation of population, for each of 204 countries and territories and the globe, using a standardized, replicable approach, as well as a comprehensive update on fertility and migration.
GBD 2019 incorporates major data additions and improvements, and methodological refinements.
- Mortality and life expectancy estimates have expanded to a total of 990 locations at the most detailed level.
- New causes of death and disability have been added to the fatal and non-fatal cause lists, for a total of 369 diseases and injuries.
- Two new risk factors (high and low non-optimal temperatures) and 54 new risk-outcome pairs have also been added.
Produced with the input of over 5,000 collaborators from 152 countries and territories, GBD 2019 also includes estimates at the subnational level for five new countries (Italy, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Poland) in addition to the countries for which subnational estimates have been published in previous editions of the GBD study (Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, Sweden, the UK, and the US).
Download GBD data on your topic and location of interest
