ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Public Health
Sec. Children and Health
Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1609990
Study on the 1990–2021 trend of global childhood respiratory infection and tuberculosis disease burden and related risk factors
Provisionally accepted
- 1Affiliated Hengyang Hospital of Hunan Normal University & Hengyang Central Hospital, Hengyang City, China
- 2The First Affiliated Hospital of Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan Province, China
- 3Shenzhen Children's Hospital, Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China
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Background: Respiratory tract infections (RTIs) and tuberculosis (TB) impose a critical global health burden on children, serving as leading causes of morbidity and mortality. Lower respiratory tract infections (LRIs) remain the primary cause of death in under-5s, though mortality has declined recently. Objective: This study aims to analyze trends in RTIs and TB among 0–14-year-olds using Global Burden of Disease (GBD) data from 1990 to 2021. Methods: Global data on childhood RTIs and TB were collected from GBD, with standardized methods used to assess disease burden trends, age/sex/SDI differences, and the contribution of 11 risk factors. Results: From 1990 to 2021, incidences of upper RTIs, otitis media, and TB decreased, but overall RTIs increased. Neonatal LRI had the highest mortality (1,560.6/100k). Male children showed higher TB incidence/mortality. Low-SDI areas had the highest burden (mortality 2.036/100k), while high-SDI areas saw the largest TB mortality drop (95.7%). Underweight remained the main risk factor, with DALY rate falling 80.3%, though household air pollution, low birth weight, short gestation, and high temperature rose in rank. Conclusion: Global childhood respiratory disease burden faces challenges, requiring strengthened international cooperation and targeted interventions, especially in low-SDI regions, to improve public health and nutrition.
Keywords: global, Children, respiratory tract infection, Tuberculosis, disease burden, Risk factors
Received: 11 Apr 2025; Accepted: 09 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Chen, Fang, Lu, Wu and Zhang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Chao Fang, Affiliated Hengyang Hospital of Hunan Normal University & Hengyang Central Hospital, Hengyang City, China
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