Pneumonia deaths surge from 14th to 3rd… Because of Corona? there was another reason

Pneumonia, which was not even in the top 10 in the cause of death statistics 20 years ago, rose to third place last year. Analysis shows that changes in population structure due to aging are also affecting the ranking of causes of death.

According to Statistics Korea’s cause of death statistics (excluding COVID-19) on the 6th, the pneumonia death rate per 100,000 population as of 2022 is 52.1, ranking third after cancer and heart disease. Twenty years ago, in 2002, the death rate per 100,000 people was only 5.7, ranking 14th as the cause of death, but it jumped from 9.4 in 2006 (10th) to 20.5 in 2012 (6th) → 52.1 in 2022 (3rd). .

There are some who point out that the ranking of pneumonia, a respiratory disease, has temporarily risen due to the impact of the pandemic, but it was already ranked 3rd as a cause of death (45.1 deaths per 100,000 people) since 2019, before COVID-19.

Experts agree that the reason for the rapid increase in the ranking of pneumonia is ‘aging’. Eom Joong-sik, a professor of infectious diseases at Gachon University Gil Hospital, said, “Pneumonia is a representative elderly disease,” adding, “As we age, we become more vulnerable to respiratory infectious diseases. “As Korea becomes an advanced country, the aging population is intensifying, so the number of deaths due to pneumonia is increasing,” he said. In fact, the ratio of the elderly population (age 65 or older) to the total population more than doubled from 7.9% in 2002 to 17.5% in 2022.

Professor Eom cited the longer life expectancy of people with chronic diseases or other immunocompromised diseases as a reason for the rapid increase in the ranking of pneumonia. He said, “It is said that more than half of those who die at the end of the hospital die from pneumonia. “As the lifespan of people with chronic diseases and underlying diseases has increased due to medical developments, more people are dying from pneumonia due to complications at the end,” he said.

In addition, there is an analysis that the rapid increase in nursing hospitals and facilities is one of the reasons for the increase in the pneumonia death rate. The number of nursing hospitals increased 26-fold over the past 20 years, from 54 in 2002 to 1,404 last year. The number of elderly care facilities more than tripled from 1,332 in 2008 to 4,346 last year.

Kim Dong-hyeon, a professor of preventive medicine at Hallym University College of Medicine, said, “(The increase in pneumonia mortality rates) coincides with a period when the number of nursing hospitals and facilities increased rapidly. “Just as various group infections broke out in the facility during the COVID-19 situation, poor management of residents may have led to an outbreak of pneumonia,” he said. Professor Eom Jung-sik also added, “In the case of long-term care facilities, residents usually lie down, which can cause aspiration pneumonia as foreign substances in the esophagus or stomach reflux.”

They pointed out that there is a need to be aware of the risk of not only cancer, which is the undisputed number one cause of death, but also pneumonia. In particular, Professor Eom argued that free pneumococcal vaccination should be expanded to the elderly. Currently, there are two types of pneumococcal vaccines that can be administered: the 23-valent polysaccharide vaccine (Prodiax) and the 13-valent protein conjugate vaccine (Prevenar). Among these, the 23-valent vaccine is the only one that can be administered free of charge to those aged 65 or older. For the 13-valent vaccine, individuals must pay about 120,000 to 130,000 won.

Professor Kim said, “It is effective if the two vaccines are administered sequentially at one-year intervals. “It may be a burden right now, but considering medical costs and social costs, the 13-valent vaccine should be included in the basic vaccinations for the elderly,” he said.

Woorim Lee ([email protected])