COVID-19 Pandemic Yielded Indirect Increases in Disease Burden

MONDAY, July 7, 2025 (HealthDay News) — The COVID-19 pandemic yielded indirect increases in disease burden for specific causes, including mental health disorders, according to a study published online July 2 in The BMJ.

Can Chen, from the Zhejiang University School of Medicine in Hangzhou, China, and colleagues conducted a time-series modeling study to quantify and identify the main causes of increased disease burden due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Globally, the researchers observed increases in the rate of age-standardized disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) in terms of absolute difference per 100,000 and relative rate difference by 97.9 and 12.2 percent, respectively, for malaria; 83.0 and 12.2 percent, respectively, for depressive disorders; and 73.8 and 14.3 percent, respectively, for anxiety disorders. These differences were prominent and statistically significant. Increases were also seen in stroke, tuberculosis, and ischemic heart disease. The age-standardized incidence and prevalence per 100,000 increased by 618.0 and 414.2, respectively, for depressive disorders and by 102.4 and 628.1, respectively, for anxiety disorders; age-standardized prevalence also increased for ischemic heart disease and stroke (11.3 and 3.0, respectively). A significant increase was also seen for age-standardized mortality due to malaria (1.3 per 100,000). The most predominant causes of increased DALY burden globally were depressive and anxiety disorders, especially among women and girls. In the African region, malaria had the most severe increased DALY burden, typically affecting children younger than 5 years.

“These findings underscore the urgent need to strengthen health system resilience, enhance integrated surveillance, and adopt syndemic-informed strategies to support equitable preparedness for future public health emergencies,” the authors write.

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