Global, regional, and national burden of dengue infection in children and adolescents: an analysis of the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021.

BACKGROUND

Dengue remains a global threat to public health, however, its disease burden among children and adolescents has always been poorly quantified. Therefore, we aimed to systematically estimate the global, regional, and national burden and temporal trends of dengue infection in children and adolescents from 1990 to 2021.

METHODS

Data on the number and rate of incidence and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) of dengue infection among children and adolescents under 20 years were obtained from the Global Burden of Disease Study (GBD) 2021. Estimated annual percentage changes (EAPCs) of the age-standardised incidence rate (ASIR) and age-standardised DALYs rate (ASDR), by age, sex, and different countries and regions, were calculated to quantify the temporal trends of dengue burden. The association between development levels (measured using the socio-demographic index [SDI]) and dengue burden was also determined.

FINDINGS

From 1990 to 2021, the global burden of dengue incidence and its associated DALYs was consistently higher in children and adolescents than in the entire population. Globally, among children and adolescents, there were 21,641,016 incident cases in 2021, an increase of 64.43% compared to 13,241,719 in 1990. The ASIR per 100,000 population increased from 587.81 in 1990 to 812.16 in 2021, with an EAPC of 1.39% (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.13%-1.65%). Besides, the number of dengue-associated DALYs among children and adolescents increased by 16.36%, from 910,458.60 in 1990 to 1,059,428.31 in 2021. The increase in DALYs was less pronounced than incidence, with the ASDR per 100,000 population increasing from 40.17 in 1990 to 41.50 in 2021, and the EAPC was only 0.67% (95% CI, 0.40%-0.95%). The incidence and DALYs burden of dengue in children and adolescents was highest in middle SDI regions, followed by low-middle SDI regions, with the lowest burden in high SDI regions. Furthermore, Tropical Latin America had an extremely high ASIR (6040.29 per 100,000 population in 2021), and Southeast Asia had an extremely high ASDR (298.20 per 100,000 population in 2021), much higher than other regions around the world.

INTERPRETATION

The global dengue burden in children and adolescents is high and has been increasing from 1990 to 2021, even though the distribution patterns vary across different countries and territories. This study first reported the global disease burden and temporal trends of children and adolescents, which has significant implications for policymakers and public health officials, as it underscores the need for age- and region-specific strategies to mitigate the growing global burden of dengue.

FUNDING

National Natural Science Foundation of China.