In Europe, chronic disease accounts for the majority of disease incidence and deaths. The World Health Organization's (WHO) project "The Global Burden of Disease" estimates that, in 2002, chronic or non-communicable conditions accounted for 87 percent of deaths in high-income countries, while only 7% of deaths were attributed to communicable conditions and nutritional deficiencies and 6% to injuries.
"eHealth is a strategic growth area for Orange," said Thierry Zylberberg, executive vice president, Orange Healthcare. "We are very happy to work with Qualcomm Life to contribute to another e-health solution that is a great example of how mobile technology enables access to affordable, improved health care services for a wide population."
The burden of chronic conditions and diseases in Europe is growing as the population ages, notes WHO. The proportion of those in European countries aged 65 years and older is projected to grow from 15% in 2000 to 23.5% by 2030. The proportion of those age 80 years and over is expected to more than double from 3% in 2000 to 6.4% in 2030.