Epidemiological transition in South -East Asia and its Public Health Implications

Abstract

South Asia's rich ecological, geographic and cultural diversity make the region unique but also explains why it is volatile and vulnerable in social, economic and environmental terms. It is a high-priority region for many public health concerns. Rising population, increase in number of urban poverty, low government spending (in terms of % of GDP) on health, dwindling health indicators are some of the immediate concerns. Apart from this, the region is facing a dual burden of diseases, where the communicable diseases are still responsible for substantial portion of deaths, burden of non-communicable diseases is steadily increasing. These changes are explained by four main stages of epidemiological transition. Movement through these stages has resulted in a dramatic shift in the cause of death from infectious diseases and malnutrition in the first stage to cardio-vascular diseases (CVDs) and cancers in most high-income countries over the last two centuries. Policy makers, public health specialists and primary care physicians are expected to keep these changes in mind, while draft policies and dealing with patients on a day to day level.

Keywords: Epidemiological transition, burden of diseases, non-communicable diseases, health indicators..