Estimated need for surgery worldwide based on prevalence of diseases: a modelling strategy for the WHO Global Health Estimate

Abstract

Background Surgery is a foundational component of health care systems. However, previous efforts to integrate surgical services into global health initiatives do not reflect the scope of surgical need and many health systems do not provide essential interventions. We estimate the minimum global volume of surgical need to address prevalent diseases in 21 epidemiological regions from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010 (GBD). Methods Prevalence data were obtained from GBD 2010 and organized into 119 disease states according to the World Health Organization’s Global Health Estimate (GHE). These data, representing 187 countries, were then apportioned to the 21 GBD epidemiological regions. Using previously defined values for the incident need for surgery for each of the 119 GHE disease states, we calculate minimum global need for surgery based on the prevalence of each condition in each region. Results We estimate that at least 321·5 million surgical procedures would be needed to address the burden of disease for a global population of 6.9 billion in 2010. Minimum rates of surgical need vary across regions, ranging from 3,383 operations per 100,000 in Central Latin America to 6,495 operations per 100,000 in Western Sub-Saharan Africa. Global surgical need also varied across sub-categories of disease, ranging from 131,412 procedures for Nutritional Deficiencies to 45.8 million procedures in Unintentional Injuries. Conclusions The estimated need for surgical procedures worldwide is large and addresses a broad spectrum of disease states. Surgical need varies between regions of the world according to disease prevalence and many countries do not meet the basic needs of their populations. These estimates may be useful for policy makers, funders, and ministries of health as they consider how to incorporate surgical capacity into health systems.

Critical care admission following elective surgery was not associated with survival benefit: prospective analysis of data from 27 countries

“…4 Papageorgiou General Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece. 5 Auckland City Hospital, Auckland, New Zealand. 6 Chinese University of Hong Kong, Sha Tin, Hong Kong.…”

“…Current estimates suggest that 310 million patients undergo surgery worldwide each year, with more procedures taking place in high income countries [2,3]. Findings from epidemiological studies suggest that 4.8 billion people are unable to access safe surgical treatments [4], and the commission has recommended that at least 143 million additional procedures are required each year, primarily in low and middle income countries [5]. However, as healthcare systems develop to improve access to surgical treatments, and more complex procedures are offered, the number of patients who suffer postoperative complications will also increase [1,4].…”

Effects of transcranial direct-current stimulation on laparoscopic surgical skill acquisition

“…More than 300 million surgical procedures are required to address the global burden of disease1. Surgical trainees display a wide range of abilities, but many may lack confidence in their ability to perform procedures2 3.…”

Contribution of Surgical Procedures Including Insertions of Implants, Stents, and Pacemakers to Longevity

“…Surgical procedures have been carried out increasingly each year for the past two hundred years since Lister experimented with developing sterile techniques to perform them [2]. Today surgeries are performed in outpatient clinics and in hospitals requiring stays ranging from few hours to overnight stay and at times several days stay [3,4]. There are several different types of surgeries performed in this century [5] ranging from tonsillectomy, appendectomies to cardiac bypass surgeries [6][7][8][9], transplantation [10][11][12], removal of benign and malignant tumors, gall stone and kidney stone removals, hip, and knee replacements [13][14][15][16], bariatric and metabolic surgery [17], cataract removal and lens insertion, insertion of implants, stents [9], pacemakers etc.…”