Update: Epidemiological trends in Swiss hospital diagnoses (2016-2023)

Up to 2023 now

Figures about ICD main diagnoses at hospital admission are yearly provided by the Swiss statistical office BMF. In an earlier article, I presented results up to 2022. Data up to 2023 are now available via email request.

I will largely refrain from medical interpretations. If you have any ideas, please feel free to write them in the comments.

General figures

The total amount of diagnoses continued to rise in 2023.

Fig. 1: Yearly number of hospital main diagnoses in Switzerland, 2016-2023. The red line marks 2020.

In order to identify flashy diagnoses, I filtered the data applying two criteria: at least 100 cases and an increase of at least 40% in 2023. I present the resulting diagrams without commentary (Fig. 2-9).

Fig. 2: ICD A400, Sepsis due to streptococcus, group A.

Fig. 3: ICD D143, Benign neoplasm of bronchus and lung.

Fig. 4: ICD E1120, Type 2 diabetes mellitus with kidney complications.

Fig. 5: ICD J9609, Respiratory failure.

Fig. 6: ICD L032, Cellulitis and acute lymphangitis of face and neck.

Fig. 7: ICD L040, Acute lymphadenitis of face, head and neck.

Fig. 8: ICD R570, Cardiogenic shock.

Fig. 9: ICD R571, Hypovolemic shock.

A search in the opposite sense, i.e. diagnoses that have fallen to 60% or less in 2023, did not generate any meaningful hits.

Mental and behavioral disorders

If we put aside physical suffering for a moment, the mental illnesses remain, which are marked with the letter "F" in the ICD classification. They continued to rise in 2023 as shown in Fig. 10.

Fig. 10: Letter “F”, Mental and behavioral disorders.

The increase in autism has slowed overall, but not among children (Fig. 11).

Fig. 11: ICD F84[01], Autism.

Depressions formed a cliff from 2020 to 2021 and remained high since then. Note the high numbers (Fig. 12).

Fig. 12: ICD F3[23], Depression.

Myocarditis, pericarditis, endocarditis

Inflammations of the heart muscle and its surrounding tissues (mycocarditis, endocarditis, pericarditis) remained high in 2023 (Fig. 13).

Fig. 13: Results from GREP query “karditis”, Inflammation of heart tissue.

Because it has been reported that this side effect of vaccines particularly affects young people, an age specific overview is given in Fig. 14.

Fig. 14: Inflammation of heart tissue in different age cohorts.

Especially among 15-39 year olds, these diseases seem to have increased noticeably since 2021. The number of cases has decreased in 2023, but is still elevated in comparison to pre-pandemic years.

Cancer

With regard to cancer, there was no clearly striking overall signal, apart from the continuous increase observed in many countries as a result of the ageing populations (Fig. 15).

Fig. 15: Diagnoses “C.*”, Cancer

Fever and cough

Fever lowered in 2023 after extremely high values in 2022. However, in most age cohorts, this common symptom remained on higher levels compared to pre pandemic years.

Fig. 16: GREP query “fieber", Fever.

For coughs, the picture looks quite similar.

Fig. 17: GREP query “husten", Cough.

Pneumonia and respiratory insufficiency

In the first article, I showed an increase in diagnoses in 2022 that affect infections, especially those of the respiratory system. This group of diagnoses decreased overall in 2023, but increased among 0-14 year olds. This is especially seen in the case of pneumonia (Fig. 18).

Fig. 18: Results from GREP query “pneumonie”, Pneumonia.

Pneumonia is probably associated with respiratory insufficiency, which also peaked in 2023 among 0-14 year olds (Fig. 19).

Fig. 19: GREP query “respiratorisch.*", diagnoses concerning the respiratory organs, mainly insufficiency.

Diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue  

This diagnosis group provides huge numbers accompanied by a trend reversal in 2020 which continued up to 2023. However, the middle age cohorts are less affected (Fig. 20)

Fig. 20: GREP query “M.+” = Diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue.  

“Muscle wasting and atrophy, not elsewhere classified” increased by more than a factor of 5 in 2022 and remained at a similarly high level in 2023. (Fig. 21).

Fig. 21: GREP query “M625.*”, Muscle wasting and atrophy, not elsewhere classified.  

Injuries of the musculoskeletal system

Fractures of the Bones (feet to neck) were on an elevated level in 2022 and 2023. The age specific view reveals that exclusively the age cohort 70+ is affected by this, while the others are not (Fig. 22).

Fig. 22: GREP query “S[1-9][2]”, bone fractures (feet to neck).

If the code number “2” is replaced by “3”, we obtain dislocation, sprain and strain of joints and ligaments, and the result is quit the opposite: The young cohorts show very high levels, especially in 2023 (Fig. 23).

Fig. 23: GREP query “S[1-9][3]”, dislocation, sprain and strain of joints and ligaments (feet to neck).

Femur fraction and bone cancer?

I conclude my observations for 2023 with a highly consternating result. While analyzing, I noticed that an unusually high number of Swiss people broke a leg in 2023, namely their shaft of the femur.

Fig. 24: Fracture of shaft of femur

Although all age groups are involved, it appears most clearly among 0-14 year olds. Not only did a trend reversal occur from 2022 to 2023, the 2023 value also marks a record high. But what I find more disturbing is that malignant neoplasms of the long leg bones have also increased steeply among boys and girls. These bone cancers have approximately doubled in one year and the numbers are of a similar magnitude to the fractures (Fig. 25). Now the question arises wether there is a connection.

Fig. 25: GREP query “C402”, Malignant neoplasm of long bones of lower limb