A Cohort Perspective on Trends in Hospitalization Rates and Case-Fatality-Rates in Switzerland

Octavio Bramajo , Institute for Evolutionary Medicine, University of Zurich
Katarina Matthes, Institute of Evolutionary Medicine, University of Zurich

Understanding hospitalization patterns in Switzerland is essential for assessing healthcare quality, costs, and the effectiveness of disease treatment. While previous studies indicate that hospitalizations for conditions such as hypertension and heart failure increased between 1998 and 2018, the extent to which different birth cohorts experience varying hospitalization risks and outcomes has not been systematically examined. Understanding these generational patterns is crucial for healthcare planning and evaluating whether medical advances benefit all generations equally. This study adopts a cohort perspective to analyze hospitalization rates and case-fatality rates across birth cohorts from 1930 to 1975, using Swiss Hospital Discharge Data (Medical Statistics from Hospitals) spanning 1998-2022 for patients aged 45-94. Unlike traditional period-based approaches, using generational lens examines whether successive cohorts face different risks of hospitalization and death for specific causes including cardiovascular, respiratory, cancer, and other major conditions, that by itself have generational components in incidence and mortality. We will analyze separately hospitalization rates (which reflect disease burden and healthcare access) and case-fatality rates (which indicate care effectiveness and illness severity). The analysis investigates cause-specific hospitalization rates and case-fatality rates across cohorts, disaggregated by sex, age and other sociodemographic determinants. Special attention is given to the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic's potential differential impact across generations. Results will inform whether cohort-specific vulnerabilities exist, guide targeted interventions, and support projections of future healthcare demand as younger cohorts age into periods of elevated health risk.

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 Presented in Session 47. Healthcare Access, Utilization and Care Needs