Historically High Excess Mortality During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Switzerland, Sweden, and Spain.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Excess mortality quantifies the overall mortality impact of a pandemic. Mortality data have been accessible for many countries in recent decades, but few continuous data have been available for longer periods.

Objective

To assess the historical dimension of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 for 3 countries with reliable death count data over an uninterrupted span of more than 100 years.

Design

Observational study.

Setting

Switzerland, Sweden, and Spain, which were militarily neutral and not involved in combat during either world war and have not been affected by significant changes in their territory since the end of the 19th century.

Participants

Complete populations of these 3 countries.

Measurements

Continuous series of recorded deaths (

SUBMITTER: Staub K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8803137 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature