BURDEN OF TUBERCULOSIS IN MALAYSIA: AN OVERVIEW FOR 2015 Nur Hamizah Nasaruddin1, Shubash Shander Ganapathy1, Mohd Azahadi Omar2, Mohamad Fuad Mohamad Anuar1, LeeAnn Tan1, Nazirah Alias1 1INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC HEALTH, NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH, SHAH ALAM, MALAYSIA 2SECTOR FOR BIOSTATISTICS AND DATA REPOSITORY, NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH, SHAH ALAM, MALAYSIA P-10 NMRR-18-609-41165 INTRODUCTION RESULTS Tuberculosis caused in Malaysia for the year 2015. MATERIALS AND METHODS The calculation of burden of disease in terms of DALY was done using the methodology used in the Global Burden of Disease Study2. The DALYs for tuberculosis were calculated by summing the Years of Life Lost (YLL) with the Years Lived with Disability (YLD). The YLLs were calculated using the mortality and life expectancy data obtained from Malaysia’s Department of Statistics. The YLDs were produced using prevalence derived from DISMOD-II software based on incidence data provided by Malaysia’s disease notification system. YLL YLD One DALY can be thought of as ONE LOST YEAR OF HEALTHY LIFE for the entire population2. DALY DALY is a health gap2. Tuberculosis is a preventable disease but still remains a public health concern. This study aims to describe Malaysia’s burden of tuberculosis for the year 2015 in terms of Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs). The World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that nearly ONE QUARTER OF THE WORLD population are at risk of progression to tuberculosis disease1. YLL (71.2%) YLD (28.8) (mortality component) (morbidity component) The MORTALITY COMPONENT was higher than the morbidity component. The RATE of tuberculosis burden increases with age and was highest among those AGED 65 YEARS AND OLDER. 0-14 15–24 25-54 55-64 65+ 419 336 208 68 10 AGE GROUP (YEARS) DALY PER 100,000 POPULATION The reduction of tuberculosis morbidity and mortality among MALES can potentially reduce a large number of tuberculosis burden in Malaysia. Stronger approaches towards lowering the number of non-communicable diseases could help lessen Malaysian ELDERLY’s risk of tuberculosis progression and deaths. CONCLUSION The authors would like to thank the Director General of Health Malaysia for his permission to publish this article. REFERENCES 1. World Health Organization. Global tuberculosis report 2019. 2. Colin M et al. National burden of disease studies: A practical guide. Global program on evidence for health policy. Geneva: World Health Organization. 2001. 3. Suchunya A et al. Decreasing the burden of infectious disease in Thailand. The Lancet 2013; 381 S11. 4. Pamela Nogueira Silva V et al. Burden of tuberculosis trends in a Brazilian southern state. Rev bras epidemiol 2018. 5. Horton KC et al. Sex differences in tuberculosis burden and notifications in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review and meta- analysis. PLoS Med 2016; 13 1-23. Population aged between 25- 54 YEARS OLD caused the highest tuberculosis burden. AGE GROUP (YEARS) % OF DALY 1.7% 57.4% 16.2% 16.0% 8.7% 65 + 55 - 64 25 - 54 15 – 24 0 - 14 MALES contributed more DALYs compared to females. 63.3% 30.7% 4 7 , 7 3 6 D A L Y s Malaysia’s burden of tuberculosis accounted for 0.9% of the overall DALYs in 2015, which is much lower compared to those observed in other countries such as Thailand (1.4% of overall DALYs in 2009) and Brazil (2% of overall DALYs in 2010)3,4. Timely detection and prompt treatment should be emphasized to prevent early deaths and subsequently reduce the high tuberculosis mortality burden. Reducing the tuberculosis burden among males could be done most efficiently by improving access for tuberculosis care for males, providing counseling sessions as well as lost of wages compensation5. Mass media campaigns on tuberculosis awareness programs, targeting age-specific groups could help reach those within the high tuberculosis burden categories. DISCUSSION