Analysis of the incidence, disability and mortality rates of the Russian population due to respiratory diseases and COVID-19 in the period 2016 – 2021

High incidence of respiratory diseases (RD) makes monitoring of the associated morbidity and mortality in the Russian population important for the public health.

The aim was to study the incidence, disability and mortality rates associated with RD in 2016 – 2021 by federal districts of Russian Federation.

Methods. Statistical data from the Ministry of Healthcare of the Russian Federation and Federal State Statistics Service was used.

Results. There was an increase in the RD morbidity by 12.0% from 2019 to 2021 (from 40,694.7 to 45,560.7 per 100 thousand population, p < 0.001), and a 3-fold increase in the incidence of pneumonia. The RD incidence increased in all federal districts, with the maximum in the Northwestern Federal District (2021 – 55,680.9 per 100 thousand population). An increase in the RD-associated mortality rates (MR) by 95.8% was recorded from 2019 to 2021: from 40.3 to 78.7 deaths per 100,000 population. In 2021, the proportion of pneumonia in the structure of MR was 65.3%, and the hospital mortality due to RD increased. The proportion of people with primary disability due to RD decreased in 2021. The COVID-19 (COronaVIrus Disease 2019) incidence rate has been registered since 2020 (2020 – 3,391.1, 2021 – 8,085.7 cases per 100 thousand population). The MR associated with COVID-19 reached 98.8 per 100,000 population in 2020 and 319.1 per 100,000 population in 2021.

Conclusion. In the period 2019 – 2021, there were an increase in the RD incidence in the Russian population, mostly due to pneumonia. The RD incidence and pneumonia incidence reached the maximum in 2021, which required expansion of the healthcare capacities at short notice.

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