Global, Regional, and National Incidence Trends of Pressure Injury From 1990 to 2021

With an aging population worldwide, pressure injury (PI) is becoming a critical challenge for healthcare professionals. We aimed to investigate the difference in PI trend globally across age groups from 1990 to 2021.

This study utilized data from the Global Burden of Diseases (GBD) 2021 to determine the age-standardized incidence rate (ASR) of PI stratified by age groups from 1990 to 2021. Estimated annual percentage changes (EAPCs) were calculated to measure corresponding temporal trends.

Over three decades, the incident cases of PI have doubled from 1.1 million to 2.5 million worldwide. The incidence of PI showed an exponential rise with increasing age groups in 2021. The significant increasing trends were observed in the population aged 20-54 years (EAPC = 0.11) and 55+ years (EAPC = 0.55) from 1990 to 2021. The ASR among males has increased from 32.53 to 33.34 per 100,000 population, with an EAPC of 0.27, while the ASR among females decreased. The ASR was increased with higher income levels and the highest ASR was observed in the high-income region (49.95 per 100,000 population). Among six regions, the Americas had the highest ASR in 2021 (90.20 per 100,000 population), while South-East Asia showed the fastest increase (EAPC = 1.22).

The global burden of PI is a growing global health problem among the elderly population, particularly in the Americas. A greater incidence burden in males and high-income level regions was found. This study advocates for urgent attention to coping strategies for aging populations and older people with PI.

This study advocates for urgent attention to coping strategies for aging populations.