Midis de la recherche

Brecht Devleesschauwer (Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Sciensano),
Belgian national burden of disease study: preliminary results and moving forward

What are the most important diseases in Belgium? Which risk factors contribute most to the overall disease burden? How is the burden of disease evolving over time? In a context of increasing budgetary constraints, a precise answer to these basic questions is more than ever necessary to inform policy-making. However, although various data sources routinely generate information on the Belgian health status, coherent and comparable estimates of the burden of diseases, injuries and risk factors in Belgium are lacking. To address this gap, Sciensano initiated in 2016 a national burden of disease study. In addition to generating estimates of mortality and morbidity by age, sex and region, the burden of disease will also be quantified using Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs). The use of DALY allows to combine in a single indicator years of life lost from premature death and years of life lived with disabilities. It therefore permits a truly comparative ranking of the burden of various diseases, injuries and risk factors. During this seminar, preliminary results of the Belgian national burden of disease study will be presented and your feedback will be sought on the way forward.