Epidemiological Patterns of Hypertension and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam: an Ecological Study

Abstract

Background: Hypertension and type 2 diabetes mellitus belong to the most costly chronic diseases worldwide. The Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a country with a high burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases, with hypertension and diabetes among the top contributors to premature mortality. Objective: The aim of the study was to describe and assess the scale of the burden of hypertension and type 2 diabetes mellitus in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Methods: An ecological study employing secondary data analysis was conducted. Data from the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation and Vietnamese Health Statistic Yearbooks were analysed by linear and polynomial regression analyses, Kendall rank correlation, and Pearson correlation. Results: From 1990 to 2017, on average, 22% of all deaths and 11% of all disability-adjusted life years were associated with high systolic blood pressure, and 3% of all deaths and 2% of all disability-adjusted life years were attributable to type 2 diabetes mellitus in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. The decrease in the number of elementary nurses, as well as the increase in health insurance expenditures per inpatient, seems to be, with the highest degree of certainty, correlated with type 2 diabetes mellitus death and disability-adjusted life years rates. Conclusion: If the tracked progress remains at the same pace, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam will likely be unable to achieve the targets related to Goal 3 of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Developing regulatory frameworks and social demand for professionalism could encourage nurses to pursue higher education.