Statistics show health gaps narrowing in past 2 decades

Health situations in the poorest countries have been greatly improved and gaps between countries with the best and worst health status have been narrowed in the past two decades, according to data released Wednesday. The World Health Organization (WHO)'s annual World Health Statistics report showed significant progress achieved in reducing child and maternal deaths, improving nutrition and reducing deaths and illness from HIV infection, tuberculosis and malaria. According to the report, the absolute gap in under-five mortality between the top and bottom countries was reduced to 107 deaths per 1000 live births in 2011, 64 less than that in 1990. In 1990, countries with the highest rates of women dying in pregnancy and childbirth had on average 915 more maternal deaths per 100,000 live births than countries with the lowest rates, which had narrowed to 512 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births by 2010. The gap between countries with the highest and lowest rates of new HIV infections narrowed from 360 to 261 people per 100 000 population between 1990 and 2011. However, Dr Ties Boerma, Director of the Department of Health Statistics and Information Systems of the WHO told a press conference that "our statistics show that overall the gaps are closing between the most-advantaged and least-advantaged countries of the world"was "far from satisfactory as progress is uneven and large gaps persist between and within countries. " Published annually by the WHO, the World Health Statistics is a comprehensive publication of health-related global statistics containing data from 194 countries on a range of mortality, disease and health system indicators.