a. Numbers in the World
12% of illnesses worldwide are of a mental nature, a figure that rises to 23% in developed countries.1
Depression disorders are the third leading cause of the global burden of disease (first in developed countries), and it is predicted to become the leading cause worldwide by 2030, with a likely worsening of related rates2 of suicide and parasuicide* 3 .
Five of the top ten causes of disability and psychosocial dependence are neuropsychiatric disorders: depression (11.8%), alcohol-related problems (3.3%), schizophrenia (2.8%), bipolar disorder (2.4%) and dementia (1.6%). 1
165 million people in Europe are affected by a mental illness or disorder annually. 4
Only a quarter of patients with mental disorders receive treatment and only 10% have treatment considered adequate.4
Mental illness and disorders have become, in recent years, the main cause of disability and one of the main causes of morbidity in societies. 5
b. Numbers in Portugal
More than a fifth of Portuguese people suffer from a psychiatric disorder (22.9%). 6
Portugal is the second country with the highest prevalence of psychiatric diseases in Europe, being surpassed only by Northern Ireland (23.1%). 6
Among psychiatric disorders, anxiety disorders have the highest prevalence (16.5%), followed by mood disorders, with a prevalence of 7.9%.
Impulse control disorders and substance abuse disorders have lower prevalence rates, respectively, with 3.5% and 1.6% prevalence. 6
About 4% of the adult population has a severe mental disorder, 11.6% a disorder of moderate severity and 7.3% a disorder of mild severity. 6
Mental and behavioral disorders represent 11.8% of the global burden of disease in Portugal, more than oncological diseases (10.4%) and only surpassed by brain-cardiovascular diseases (13.7%).7