Women’s Health in Bangladesh: The Untold Burden Beyond Maternal Care

Women Health Unseen

Abstract

Women are unique having unique health issues. They have female exclusive diseases and diseases that are common for both sexes but with different implications. Over the past five decades, the understanding of women’s health has expanded from a narrow focus on reproduction to a holistic appreciation of women’s health across the life course. Bangladesh, like many low- and middle-income countries, has made great progress in saving mothers’ lives, but women’s other health needs remain largely neglected. The Global Burden of Disease 2021 reveals that women in Bangladesh now live longer but spend more years in poor health, largely due to unaddressed gynaecological and chronic conditions.¹

The Bangladesh Paradox

Bangladesh exemplifies both progress and neglect in women’s health. The country’s success in reducing the maternal mortality ratio from 322 to 196 per 100,000 live births between 2001 and 2016 reflects decades of targeted investment.^2-4 Over the past three decades, the rate of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) due to maternal disorders among women aged 15–49 has decreased (1508 Vs 449 per 100,000 female population) 3.4 times, while the reduction for benign gynecological disorders in the same age group has been 1.5 times (1034 Vs 676 per 100,000 female population).

Female-exclusive disease burden: a silent epidemic

The 2021 GBD data show that female-exclusive diseases account for 831,217 DALYs in Bangladesh—nearly seven times higher than the 118,866 DALYs from male-exclusive diseases.^13,14 Similar to the global and LMICs scenario (15.8 million and 12.5 million), in Bangladesh, other gynecological conditions account for the highest (270,287) disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), which is almost one-third of the total DALYs due to female-exclusive diseases (Figure 1). These are not fatal illnesses— but they erode quality of life, productivity and dignity.¹ Cervical cancer alone claims 193,425 years of life lost (YLLs)—more than triple the male YLLs from prostate cancer (61,060).¹

Beyond reproduction: chronic conditions shaping women’s lives

Among the top 20 causes of disease burden, Bangladeshi women experience disproportionate DALYs than males from low-back pain, depressive disorders, diabetes, diarrhoeal diseases, and musculoskeletal conditions, patterns similar to global trends but with far higher intensity.

The female-to-male DALY-rate ratio for these conditions increased from 1·4 to 1·7 per 100 000 population over the last 30 years. These numbers translate into daily suffering of women, which is seldom captured in routine reporting or addressed in policy frameworks.

Structural and systemic gaps

Despite Bangladesh’s commitment to universal health coverage, the health system remains skewed toward obstetric emergencies, neglecting non-maternal women’s health. In Bangladesh, where about half of the 171 million population are women, one female doctor serves 7,644 women compared with one male doctor for every 4,573 men (5). Tertiary hospitals in Bangladesh serve both sexes or focus on children, leaving women’s specific health needs largely overlooked. There have been multiple structured registers (antenatal care register, postnatal care register, emergency obstetric and newborn care register, delivery register, OT register) allocated to record information of obstetric patients in different service delivery points of public health facilities, whereas it is nonexistent of gynaecological services.

Bangladesh Medical Res Counc Bull 2025;51(3): 107-109