U.S. Disease Incidence and Prevalence

This report examines the etiology and epidemiology, hospital discharges, incidence and prevalence figures, and survival rates and mortality figures for the years 1996-2005, and 2007 (with estimated incidence and mortality figures for 2006 and 2008, when available) of the most prevalent and costly diseases/disorders in the United States. Categories covered by this report include:

• blood disorders (anemia [including iron deficiency anemia, sickle cell anemia, and thalassemia] and hemophilia);
• cancer (such as that of the bladder, breast, bronchial/lung, cervical/uterine, pancreas, prostate, and skin [as well as leukemia and lymphoma]);
• cardiovascular diseases/disorders (such as atherosclerosis, heart failure, hypertension, and pacing disorders);
• gastric and metabolic diseases/disorders (such as diabetes, gastroesophageal reflux disease, irritable bowel syndrome, and kidney disease);
• musculoskeletal diseases/disorders (such as arthritis [osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis], muscular dystrophy, and osteoporosis);
• neurologic and psychiatric diseases/disorders (such as Alzheimer’s disease, amyotrophic lateral disease, depression, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, schizophrenia, and stroke);
• ophthalmologic diseases/disorders (cataracts and glaucoma);
• reproductive and genitourinary disorders (such as benign prostatic hyperplasia, erectile dysfunction, infertility, and urinary incontinence);
• respiratory diseases/disorders (such as apnea, asthma, cystic fibrosis, emphysema, pneumonia, respiratory failure, and tuberculosis);sexually transmitted diseases (genital herpes and human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immune deficiency syndrome); and,
• skin wounds (such as diabetic and pressure ulcers, surgical wounds, and traumatic wounds such as abrasions, amputations, burns, contusion, and lacerations).

In addition to proprietary data from Medtech Insight’s internal resources, many governmental and nonprofit organizations have provided data and hospital discharge information including the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association, the American Lung Association, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Center for Health Statistics, and the National Institutes of Health.

While secondary sources are believed to offer the best data on disease/disorder incidence and prevalence, the estimation of trends from these data is complicated by periodic changes in reporting and classification methods. Figures cited are for the most recent years available.