On 24 February, the WHO Regional Office for Europe (WHO Europe) published the European Health Report 2024, a report produced every three years setting out the state of health in the WHO Europe region. This edition focuses on the indicators included in the measurement framework of the WHO European Programme of Work 2020–2025 (United Action for Better Health). The report is divided into multiple sections, including infectious disease, non-communicable diseases and mental health, amongst others. Under the section on mental health, there is a dedicated sub-section (section 6.3 – p.130-132), which specifically examines dementia.
The key messages from this section the report include:
• In 2019 about 14 million people (one in 11 of those aged 65 years and older) were living with dementia in the WHO European Region
• The number of dementia-related DALYs rose from 3.7 million in 2000 to 7.8 million in 2021 in the Region, with twice as many for women than for men
• The prevalence of dementia is expected to double by 2030, anticipating a significant increase in the need for comprehensive and integrated care across all care settings, including long-term care
• The WHO Global action plan on the public health response to dementia 2017–2025 contributes to achieving the SDGs by improving timely diagnosis, treatment, care (long-term care) and rehabilitation for people with dementia and promoting population-wide risk reduction efforts for dementia.
The full European Health Report 2024 is available at:
https://www.who.int/europe/publications/i/item/WHO-EURO-2025-10668-50440-76183
