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CHINA - Top causes of death
Investigation to find top causes of death
By Zhang Feng (China Daily)
The third national investigation into causes of death has started, the spokesman of the Ministry of Health announced yesterday in Beijing.
At least 100 million residents, nearly 10 per cent of the country's total population, will be covered by the investigation to be conducted in 160 counties.
Various cancers and chronic diseases will be the main targets of the investigation, said spokesman Mao Qun'an at a monthly press conference.
The investigation, which will be completed by the end of this year, will add to data collected by similar efforts in the mid 1970s and early 1990s.
Doctors and public health workers will collect data by assessing death records and surveying people in hospitals and homes.
"In the past 10 years, environmental conditions, healthcare, lifestyles and nutrition have changed a lot, which means causes of death will also change," Mao said.
A better understanding of death causes is essential for health authorities' efforts to make proper policy and intervention decisions, he noted.
Official statistics show that among the 7.31 million deaths in 2000, 6 million were due to various chronic diseases.
Brain and heart diseases claimed 2.5 million lives, and cancer killed more than 1.4 million.
In another development, a World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Surveillance, Research and Training on Emerging Infectious Diseases will be formally launched today at the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention of Guangdong Province.
The centre is a joint project between the Ministry of Health, the Guangdong provincial government and the WHO Regional Office for the Western Pacific.
A key focus of the new centre is disease surveillance and prevention, Roy Wadia, WHO's China spokesman, said yesterday.
This includes exploring ways of enhancing epidemiological and virological surveillance through pilot projects, and programmes aimed at strengthening the integration of current surveillance systems.
The centre will also aim to further strengthen the capacity of the Guangdong CDC laboratory to detect emerging infectious diseases, including influenza.
Another important purpose of the centre is to help carry out research in areas such as the animal origins of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), the human-animal interface in flu transmission and efforts to estimate the disease burden of flu and other infections.
The creation of the new centre provides a training base in Guangdong and other southern provinces in emerging infectious diseases.
It is hoped that this centre will eventually expand to become a training base for neighbouring countries as well, the WHO spokesman said.
"We know from SARS and avian influenza that what happens in one country affects another," said Shigeru Omi, WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific.
"China is helping WHO and the world implement lessons learnt from recent emerging infectious diseases for the national, regional and global public health good," Omi said.
Mao Qun'an also stressed yesterday that although there had been no new outbreaks of human cases of bird flu for more than one month, the ministry still asked hospitals and Centres of Disease Control at various levels to strengthen the monitoring of any possible epidemics.
Last week, China attended the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) joint bird flu prevention and control drill. Mao pledged China would share more information with the international community in bird flu control.
Since January 2004, bird flu has caused the deaths of nearly 10 million pieces of poultry, and infected 18 people killing 12.
(China Daily 06/13/2006 page2)
By Zhang Feng (China Daily)
The third national investigation into causes of death has started, the spokesman of the Ministry of Health announced yesterday in Beijing.
At least 100 million residents, nearly 10 per cent of the country's total population, will be covered by the investigation to be conducted in 160 counties.
Various cancers and chronic diseases will be the main targets of the investigation, said spokesman Mao Qun'an at a monthly press conference.
The investigation, which will be completed by the end of this year, will add to data collected by similar efforts in the mid 1970s and early 1990s.
Doctors and public health workers will collect data by assessing death records and surveying people in hospitals and homes.
"In the past 10 years, environmental conditions, healthcare, lifestyles and nutrition have changed a lot, which means causes of death will also change," Mao said.
A better understanding of death causes is essential for health authorities' efforts to make proper policy and intervention decisions, he noted.
Official statistics show that among the 7.31 million deaths in 2000, 6 million were due to various chronic diseases.
Brain and heart diseases claimed 2.5 million lives, and cancer killed more than 1.4 million.
In another development, a World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Surveillance, Research and Training on Emerging Infectious Diseases will be formally launched today at the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention of Guangdong Province.
The centre is a joint project between the Ministry of Health, the Guangdong provincial government and the WHO Regional Office for the Western Pacific.
A key focus of the new centre is disease surveillance and prevention, Roy Wadia, WHO's China spokesman, said yesterday.
This includes exploring ways of enhancing epidemiological and virological surveillance through pilot projects, and programmes aimed at strengthening the integration of current surveillance systems.
The centre will also aim to further strengthen the capacity of the Guangdong CDC laboratory to detect emerging infectious diseases, including influenza.
Another important purpose of the centre is to help carry out research in areas such as the animal origins of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), the human-animal interface in flu transmission and efforts to estimate the disease burden of flu and other infections.
The creation of the new centre provides a training base in Guangdong and other southern provinces in emerging infectious diseases.
It is hoped that this centre will eventually expand to become a training base for neighbouring countries as well, the WHO spokesman said.
"We know from SARS and avian influenza that what happens in one country affects another," said Shigeru Omi, WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific.
"China is helping WHO and the world implement lessons learnt from recent emerging infectious diseases for the national, regional and global public health good," Omi said.
Mao Qun'an also stressed yesterday that although there had been no new outbreaks of human cases of bird flu for more than one month, the ministry still asked hospitals and Centres of Disease Control at various levels to strengthen the monitoring of any possible epidemics.
Last week, China attended the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) joint bird flu prevention and control drill. Mao pledged China would share more information with the international community in bird flu control.
Since January 2004, bird flu has caused the deaths of nearly 10 million pieces of poultry, and infected 18 people killing 12.
(China Daily 06/13/2006 page2)
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