All-cause and Cause-Specific Excess Deaths during the COVID-19 Pandemic

We estimated the excess mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020-2023) in selected countries worldwide. In Europe, half a million excess deaths occurred annually in the first three years of the pandemic, while a 2.1% excess was observed in 2023 (108,629 deaths). Significant excess mortality was...

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Main Authors: Margherita Pizzato, Claudia Santucci, Carlo La Vecchia, Gianfranco Alicandro
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Milano University Press 2025-05-01
Series:Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Public Health
Subjects:
Online Access:https://riviste.unimi.it/index.php/ebph/article/view/27958
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author Margherita Pizzato
Claudia Santucci
Carlo La Vecchia
Gianfranco Alicandro
author_facet Margherita Pizzato
Claudia Santucci
Carlo La Vecchia
Gianfranco Alicandro
author_sort Margherita Pizzato
collection DOAJ
description We estimated the excess mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020-2023) in selected countries worldwide. In Europe, half a million excess deaths occurred annually in the first three years of the pandemic, while a 2.1% excess was observed in 2023 (108,629 deaths). Significant excess mortality was recorded worldwide for all-cause mortality, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes, with peaks in COVID-19 cases closely aligning with these excess deaths. No increase in cancer-related mortality was observed. Gross domestic product per capita, national health expenditure, and vaccination rates were inversely associated with excess mortality. These findings provide insights into the public health impact of COVID-19 and inform future policy decisions.
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publishDate 2025-05-01
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series Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Public Health
spelling doaj-art-8685d9bf75de4fe7a6b9ace8fb43d9832025-08-20T02:16:19ZengMilano University PressEpidemiology, Biostatistics and Public Health2282-09302025-05-0120110.54103/2282-0930/27958All-cause and Cause-Specific Excess Deaths during the COVID-19 PandemicMargherita Pizzato0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0340-0435Claudia Santuccihttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-9845-5307Carlo La Vecchia1https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1441-897XGianfranco Alicandro2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0430-2714University of Milan University of MilanUniversity of Milan We estimated the excess mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020-2023) in selected countries worldwide. In Europe, half a million excess deaths occurred annually in the first three years of the pandemic, while a 2.1% excess was observed in 2023 (108,629 deaths). Significant excess mortality was recorded worldwide for all-cause mortality, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes, with peaks in COVID-19 cases closely aligning with these excess deaths. No increase in cancer-related mortality was observed. Gross domestic product per capita, national health expenditure, and vaccination rates were inversely associated with excess mortality. These findings provide insights into the public health impact of COVID-19 and inform future policy decisions. https://riviste.unimi.it/index.php/ebph/article/view/27958COVID-19SARS-CoV-2pandemicExcess mortalitycauses of deathdiabetes
spellingShingle Margherita Pizzato
Claudia Santucci
Carlo La Vecchia
Gianfranco Alicandro
All-cause and Cause-Specific Excess Deaths during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Public Health
COVID-19
SARS-CoV-2
pandemic
Excess mortality
causes of death
diabetes
title All-cause and Cause-Specific Excess Deaths during the COVID-19 Pandemic
title_full All-cause and Cause-Specific Excess Deaths during the COVID-19 Pandemic
title_fullStr All-cause and Cause-Specific Excess Deaths during the COVID-19 Pandemic
title_full_unstemmed All-cause and Cause-Specific Excess Deaths during the COVID-19 Pandemic
title_short All-cause and Cause-Specific Excess Deaths during the COVID-19 Pandemic
title_sort all cause and cause specific excess deaths during the covid 19 pandemic
topic COVID-19
SARS-CoV-2
pandemic
Excess mortality
causes of death
diabetes
url https://riviste.unimi.it/index.php/ebph/article/view/27958
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AT claudiasantucci allcauseandcausespecificexcessdeathsduringthecovid19pandemic
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AT gianfrancoalicandro allcauseandcausespecificexcessdeathsduringthecovid19pandemic