Burden of Mental and Substance Use Disorders - China, 1990-2019

China CDC Wkly. 2020 Oct 9;2(41):804-809. doi: 10.46234/ccdcw2020.219.

Abstract

What is already known about this topic?

Mental and substance use disorders have notable contributions to the disease burden in China.

What is added by this report?

In China, mental disorders and substance use disorders accounted for 20.29 million and 5.76 million disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) in 2019, respectively; depressive disorders were the leading cause of DALYs. For mental disorders, the numbers of DALYs increased 12.06% from 2000 to 2019 while the standardized rates declined 5.24%; for substance use disorders, both the numbers and standardized rates of DALYs decreased 8.52% and 18.52%, respectively.

What are the implications for public health practices?

Mental and substance use disorders pose a challenge to the healthcare system in China. The government should take action and decrease the associated burden of disease.

Grants and funding

The study was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program “Applied Study on the Data-driven Prevention and Control Strategies of the Major Chronic Disease” (2018YFC1315305).