World Health Concerns: What‘s No. 1?

Dec. 14, 2007 -- A new world health survey shows how health priorities shift around the globe.

More than 45,000 people worldwide took part in the global health survey. Most of them -- some 33,000 people -- live in low- and middle-income regions.

In face-to-face or telephone interviews, participants in low- and middle-income countries heard a list of health concerns and picked what they felt should be their government's top public health priorities.

Here are their top picks:

• Sub-Saharan Africa: HIV/AIDS
• Asia: HIV/AIDS
• Central and Eastern Europe: Access to care
• Latin America: Hunger/malnutrition
• Middle East: Hunger/malnutrition

Participants in Western Europe and North America weren't asked that question because the list of public health concerns would probably be different in wealthy nations.

The international health survey comes from The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation and The Pew Global Attitudes Project.