Social and economic impacts of non-communicable diseases by gender and its correlates: a literature review.

BACKGROUND

Tackling social impacts derived from gender disparities is a pathway to universal health coverage (UHC). Gender intersects with other factors behind social and health inequalities, exacerbates them and influences health systems' performance. However, there is scarcity of gender-based studies that assess the social and economic impacts of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). This study aims to identify economic and social impacts of NCDs by gender and its correlates.

METHODS

Following the guidelines proposed in the Cochrane Manual for Systematic Reviews of Interventions and the PRISMA Statement, we conducted a narrative and structured literature review to identify the economic (direct medical and non-medical, and indirect costs) and social (right to health, employment, poverty, social exclusion, and others) impacts of NCDs by gender, and its structural, sociodemographic, health conditions, political and health systems correlates, for the period 2002-2022, in English and Spanish. Reviewed studies were described according to country and research context, temporal evolution, gender, impacts of NCDs and correlates.

FINDINGS

Five thousand five hundred fifty-one publications by title and abstract were reviewed, and 185 articles were selected. There is limited evidence with gender perspective addressing the social and economic impacts of NCDs (around 10% of publications) that helps to better understand the difference in the burden of these conditions between men and women. We identified that the social burden primarily affects women in their quality of life, where gender inequities are observed in aspects such as: health care, employment status and living conditions. In addition, a greater responsibility falls on them as caregivers. On the other hand, the economic burden affects more to men, both in terms of direct medical costs and indirect costs. Among the factors that most influenced the identified impacts, we found gender, age, and socioeconomic level. We also identified that access to health insurance that offers financial protection against these conditions is essential to reduce these impacts.

CONCLUSIONS

NCDs pose a significant social and economic burden due to their impact on the health of the population, healthcare systems, and the economies of households and nations, which will likely increase over time. This impact is closely related to gender, although it has been scarcely documented. Public policies aimed at enhancing access and achieving UHC are essential to guarantee effective financial protection in health, especially for the most vulnerable sectors of the population.