Trends in ‘Deaths of Despair’ in Europe during the Covid-19 Pandemic - What Is the Difference to the United States?

Ronny Westerman, Federal Institute for Population Research (BiB), Germany
Michael Muehlichen, Federal Institute for Population Research (BiB), Germany

'Deaths of despair' as an important topic in public health research is almost exclusively described as a US phenomenon, although similar patterns were observed in many European countries before the Covid-19 pandemic. While massive restrictions imposed by public authorities may worsen mental health at the individual level, 'deaths of despair' may also have increased in Europe during the pandemic. For the data analysis, we used official mortality data from Eurostat and CDC Wonder. We estimate age-standardised death rates for suicide, alcohol- and drug-related deaths, separately and together as 'deaths of despair'. For cross-country comparisons between Europe and the United States, we have calculated annual changes in relative and absolute terms for the periods 2011-2019 and 2019-2020/2021. In contrast to the United States, 'deaths of despair' in all European countries were dominated by the increase in alcohol-related deaths. Drug-related deaths were less common in Europe than in the United States. Suicides also increased slightly in many European countries during the Covid-19 period. The level, composition, and trends in "deaths of despair" differ substantially between the United States and many European countries, highlighting the need for increased public health surveillance of such deaths.

Keywords: Mortality and Longevity, Health and Morbidity, Comparative methods , Population, Shocks and Pandemics

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