Abstract

Comparing the Prevalence and Drug Treatment Rates of Diabetes, Hypertension and Dyslipidemia between Japan and Brazil, using 2013 National Health Surveys

Author(s): Rocha, Gabriela Guimaraes Oliveira, Jessika Cefrin, Vanessa Cuentro, Claudine Lamanna Schirmer and Maria Marina Serrao Cabral

Diabetes and other Non-Communicable Diseases (NCD) are public health concerns in both developed and developing countries. Brazil and Japan have made publically available National Health Surveys focus also in the prevalence of NCD, among them Diabetes, Hypertension and Dyslipidemia. This study offers a unique opportunity to understand the prevalence of NCD in economically different countries exploring also the drug use for those conditions. The results showed that the Japanese population has higher prevalence of all conditions, but Brazil presented a quite substantial number of participants who never checked for those conditions, mainly for dyslipidemia. Japanese survey did not check for that information. Treatment rate was higher in the Brazilian population but the specific mortality rate for both Diabetes and Hypertension was also higher in this country. We concluded that NCD are frequent health problems in both countries. Brazil has improved the access to medication to NCD conditions, although it still has a much higher mortality rate. The treatment of NCD is not only performed through drug treatment but also by public health education which seems to be more effective performed in the Japanese population.