(Kaieteur News) – Guyana has been identified as one of the countries carrying the heaviest burden of neurological disorders in the Americas, according to a major new study published in The Lancet Regional Health – Americas, which found that nearly two in every five people across the region are living with conditions affecting the brain and nervous system.

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)-led research places Guyana alongside Haiti, Suriname, Saint Kitts and Nevis, the Dominican Republic and Paraguay among the countries with the highest neurological disease burden, pointing to persistent gaps in prevention, diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation and long-term care.

The study, based on estimates from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2023, found that the burden of neurological disorders in the Americas is evolving. While age-adjusted death rates have declined since 1990, more people are surviving these conditions and living longer with disability, increasing demand for rehabilitation, long-term care, and support services.