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. 2015 Jul 2:7:377-85.
doi: 10.2147/CEOR.S74682. eCollection 2015.

Impact of noncommunicable diseases in the State of Qatar

Salma Khalaf Al-Kaabi  1 , Andrew Atherton  1
Affiliations

Impact of noncommunicable diseases in the State of Qatar

Salma Khalaf Al-Kaabi et al. Clinicoecon Outcomes Res. .

Abstract

This study, commissioned by the Supreme Council of Health in the State of Qatar, focuses on the main noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) globally and regionally, in order to gauge their potential impact on Qatar. The research shows that the Gulf Cooperation Council is projected to be affected dramatically by NCDs in the coming years. The top five NCDs that will affect Qatar in terms of economic burden and disability-adjusted life years are cardiovascular diseases, mental health and behavioral disorders, cancer, respiratory diseases, and diabetes. Whilst these diseases have diverse effects on patients, their causes can be traced to "… common lifestyle-related, or behavioral, risk factors such as tobacco use, a diet heavy in fat, and physical inactivity". The total direct and indirect costs to the Gulf Cooperation Council calculated for the above five NCDs were $36.2 billion in 2013, which equates to 150% of the officially recorded annual health care expenditure. If this trajectory is maintained, spending per head of population in Qatar will reach $2,778 by 2022. These figures demonstrate not only the potential financial impact of the main NCDs, but also give an idea of how the current health system is working to address them.

Keywords: State of Qatar; cancer; cardiovascular disease; diabetes; mental health; national health strategy; respiratory disease.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Top ten causes of death in the world in 2012. Note: Reprinted from World Health Organization. The top 10 causes of Death. Available from: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs310/en/index2.html. Accessed October 20, 2014. Abbreviations: HIV, human immunodeficiency virus; AIDS, acquired immune deficiency syndrome; COPD chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; LRTI, lower respiratory tract infection.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Ten leading causes of death in high income countries in 2012. Note: Reprinted from World Health Organization. The top 10 causes of Death. Available from: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs310/en/index2.html. Accessed October 20, 2014. Abbreviations: COPD chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; LRTI, lower respiratory tract infection.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Death rate by 100,000 population for the most common diseases leading to death in Qatar in 2010. Note: Reproduced with permission from World Health Organization. Qatar STEPS Survey. 2012 Fact Sheet. Available from: http://www.who.int/chp/steps/Qatar_FactSheet_2012.pdf. Accessed December 24, 2014.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Direct and indirect costs of the five most prevalent noncommunicable diseases (in 2013 $US billion). Note: Reproduced with permission from Chahine G, Bitar J, Assouad P, Abi Chaker S. The $68 billion challenge, quantifying and tackling the burden of chronic diseases in the GCC. Booz & Co; 2013. Available from: http://www.booz.com/me/home/thought_leadership_strategy/reports_and_white_papers_me/display/the-68-billion-dollar-challenge?cm_mid=3108890&cm_crmid={95462fe6-3e45-475a-bb64-5f541513f176}&cm_medium=email. Accessed March 24, 2014.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Visits and admissions for noncommunicable diseases in 2013–2022. Note: Reproduced with permission from Chahine G, Bitar J, Assouad P, Abi Chaker S. The $68 billion challenge, quantifying and tackling the burden of chronic diseases in the GCC. Booz & Co; 2013. Available from: http://www.booz.com/me/home/thought_leadership_strategy/reports_and_white_papers_me/display/the-68-billion-dollar-challenge?cm_mid=3108890&cm_crmid={95462fe6-3e45-475a-bb64-5f541513f176}&cm_medium=email. Accessed March 24, 2014.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Top drivers of lost output. Breakdown of costs of noncommunicable diseases by disease type based on the EPIC model. Note: Reproduced with permission from Bloom, D.E., Cafiero, E.T., Jané-Llopis, E., Abrahams-Gessel, S., Bloom, L.R., Fathima, S., Feigl, A.B., Gaziano, T., Mowafi, M., Pandya, A., Prettner, K., Rosenberg, L., Seligman, B., Stein, A.Z., & Weinstein, C. (2011). The Global Economic Burden of Noncommunicable Diseases. Geneva: World Economic Forum. Abbreviation: EPIC, European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition.
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