J Korean Med Assoc.  2023 Feb;66(2):132-142. 10.5124/jkma.2023.66.2.132.

Cause-of-death statistics in 2020 in the Republic of Korea

• Vital Statistics Division, Statistics Korea
• Noh H
• Seo J
• Lee S
• Yi N
• Park S
• Choi YJ
• Huh S

• KMID: 2539909
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.5124/jkma.2023.66.2.132

Abstract

Background
This study analyzed the causes of death in the Korean population in 2020.
Methods
Cause-of-death data for 2020 from Statistics Korea were examined based on the Korean Standard Classification of Diseases and Causes of Death, 7th revision and the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th revision.
Results
In total, 304,948 deaths occurred, reflecting an increase of 9,838 (3.3%) from 2019. The crude death rate (the number of deaths per 100,000 people) was 593.9, corresponding to an increase of 19.0 (3.3%) from 2019. The 10 leading causes of death, in descending order, were malignant neoplasms, heart diseases, pneumonia, cerebrovascular diseases, intentional self-harm, diabetes mellitus, Alzheimer disease, liver diseases, hypertensive diseases, and sepsis. Cancer accounted for 27.0% of deaths. Within the category of malignant neoplasms, the top 5 leading organs of involvement were the lung, liver, colon, stomach, and pancreas. Sepsis was included in the 10 leading causes of death for the first time. Mortality due to pneumonia decreased to 43.3 (per 100,000 people) from 45.1 in 2019. The number of deaths due to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was 950, of which 54.5% were in people aged 80 or older.
Conclusion
These changes reflect the continuing increase in deaths due to diseases of old age, including sepsis. The decrease in deaths due to pneumonia may have been due to protective measures against SARS-CoV-2. With the concomitant decrease in fertility, 2020 became the first year in which Korea’s natural total population decreased.

Keyword

Cause of death; COVID-19; International Classification of Diseases; Malignant neoplasms; Republic of Korea; 사망원인; 코로나바이러스병19; 국제사인분류; 악성종양; 대한민국