Tens of millions of physical examination data show that nearly half of the population is overweight, has lung nodules, and has thyroid nodules
A blue book analyzing the health of Chinese people, made by a well-known professional medical examination institution based on massive medical examination data, was recently released in Beijing. The blue book shows that the top five abnormal results detected in medical examinations are: lung nodules, overweight and obesity, thyroid nodules, fatty liver, and female breast nodules. This shows that about half of the people who undergo medical examinations have overweight and obesity, lung nodules, and thyroid nodules.
The data in the Blue Book comes from samples drawn from nearly 600 medical examination centers of Meinian Health in 2023, with a sample size of 19.81 million, covering 31 provinces across the country, with the labor force as the main analysis object. It focuses on five major areas: cardiovascular health, endocrine health, respiratory health, digestive health, and urogenital health, mainly covering a total of 18 diseases or abnormal indicators such as hypertension, diabetes, lung nodules, fatty liver, kidney stones, and HPV infection.
"This is the largest research on physical examination data of healthy people with the largest number of people undergoing physical examinations and the widest geographical coverage to date, and it truly reflects the health status of China's urban population." Yu Rong, chairman of Meinian Health, said that he hopes the Blue Book can provide data support for the development of China's public health and preventive medicine, provide data support for government departments to formulate and improve relevant health policies, and contribute to popularizing the concept of prevention first and comprehensively improving the health literacy of residents.
After comparing the detection rate of abnormal results in the physical examination population in 2022, it was found that the detection rate of diabetes increased, while the detection rate of Helicobacter pylori infection decreased significantly. Data show that the detection rate of diabetes increased from 9.2% in 2022 to 9.9% in 2023. In the current situation of widespread overweight, obesity, unhealthy diet and lack of exercise, the prevalence of diabetes in the health examination population is still rising. The detection rate of Helicobacter pylori infection decreased from 32.8% in 2022 to 29.3% in 2023. This reflects that the public's awareness of active treatment of Helicobacter pylori has increased significantly, and also reflects that this examination has been generally included in health examinations and the detection method is fast and reliable.
The Blue Book has added analysis of two key physical examination indicators, namely coronary artery calcification and pulmonary ground-glass nodules. Data show that the detection rate of coronary artery calcification is 15.3%, with a higher detection rate in men than in women. After the age of 40, the detection rate of coronary artery calcification increases rapidly with age. Coronary artery calcification can be used as one of the signs of coronary atherosclerosis. The detection of calcified plaques is of great significance for the prediction, diagnosis, and prevention of coronary heart disease and large vessel events.
The Blue Book points out that in the 2023 Meinian Health Checkup population, the detection rate of fatty liver was 39%, with the highest rates in middle-aged men and elderly women, and a clear trend of higher rates in the north than in the south. Currently, fatty liver disease has replaced chronic hepatitis B as the most common chronic liver disease in my country, especially in men aged 40-44, with a detection rate of 61%. The data also shows that the detection rate of advanced liver fibrosis is 2.2%, and the detection rate of cirrhosis is 0.6%, both of which are higher in men than in women.
Data is the cornerstone of AI. Seven years ago, Meinian Health had a keen insight into the development trend of "medical AI" and took the lead in breaking through the physical examination industry. It focused on developing the massive, professional and accurate data accumulated by the physical examination platform as part of its strategic development, laying the foundation for the development of artificial intelligence in the medical field. The reporter learned that in May this year, Meinian Health reported a total of 1.495 billion yuan worth of data resources in the first quarter of 2024 under the items of current assets inventory, intangible assets in non-current assets and development expenses.
Some experts analyzed that this result shows that the assetization of data elements of Chinese listed companies has opened a historic curtain and is a milestone event in China's process of building a digital economy.
