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Observational Study
. 2024 Apr 8;14(4):e080612.
doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2023-080612.

Global, regional and national epidemiology of allergic disorders in children from 1990 to 2019: findings from the Global Burden of Disease study 2019

Jia-Jie Lv #  1 , Xiang-Meng Kong #  2 , Yan Zhao #  1   3 , Xin-Yu Li  1   4 , Zhi-Lin Guo  5 , Yuan-Jie Zhang  5 , Zhi-Hua Cheng  5
Affiliations
Observational Study

Global, regional and national epidemiology of allergic disorders in children from 1990 to 2019: findings from the Global Burden of Disease study 2019

Jia-Jie Lv et al. BMJ Open. .

Abstract

Objective: This modelling study aimed to estimate the burden for allergic diseases in children during a period of 30 years.

Design: Population-based observational study.

Main outcomes and measures: The data on the incidence, mortality and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) for childhood allergic diseases, such as atopic dermatitis (AD) and asthma, were retrieved from the Global Burden of Disease study 2019 online database. This data set spans various groups, including different regions, ages, genders and Socio-Demographic Indices (SDI), covering the period from 1990 to 2019.

Results: In 2019, there were approximately 81 million children with asthma and 5.6 million children with AD worldwide. The global incidence of asthma in children was 20 million. Age-standardised incidence rates showed a decrease of 4.17% for asthma, from 1075.14 (95% uncertainty intervals (UI), 724.63 to 1504.93) per 100 000 population in 1990 to 1030.33 (95% UI, 683.66 to 1449.53) in 2019. Similarly, the rates for AD decreased by 5.46%, from 594.05 (95% UI, 547.98 to 642.88) per 100 000 population in 1990 to 561.61 (95% UI, 519.03 to 608.29) in 2019. The incidence of both asthma and AD was highest in children under 5 years of age, gradually decreasing with age. Interestingly, an increase in SDI was associated with a rise in the incidence of both conditions. However, the mortality rate and DALYs for asthma showed a contrasting trend.

Conclusions: Over the past three decades, there has been a worldwide increase in new asthma and AD cases, even though mortality rates have significantly declined. However, the prevalence of these allergic diseases among children varies considerably across regions, countries and age groups. This variation highlights the need for precise prevalence assessments. These assessments are vital in formulating effective strategies for prevention and treatment.

Keywords: Adolescents; Child protection; Public health.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Trends in asthma incidence, deaths and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) among children from 1990 to 2019. (A) Trends in incident cases and incidence rate. (B) Trends in deaths cases and deaths rate. (C) Trends in DALYs cases and DALYs rate.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Epidemiologic trends of incidence, death and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) rates in five Socio-Demographic Index (SDI) regions of childhood asthma from 1990 to 2019. ASDR, Age-Standardised Deaths Rate; ASIR, Age-Standardised Incidence Rate.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Ratio of male to female incidence of allergic diseases in children in different age subgroups. (A) Asthma (B) Atopic dermatitis. SDI, Socio-Demographic Index.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Change incident cases of allergic diseases in children in 204 countries and territories. (A) Asthma (B) AD. AD, atopic dermatitis.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Future forecasts of Global Burden of Disease in asthma. (A) The age standardised prevalence rate. (B) The age standardised incidence rate. SDI, socio-Demographic Index.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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