Comparative Analysis of COVID-19 Mortality in Slovenia and Croatia

Vera Graovac Matassi , University of Zadar
Damir Josipovic, Institute for Ethnic Studies

In late 2019, China reported a number of cases of pneumonia of unknown etymology, and in just a couple of months the COVID-19 pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 virus (coronavirus) began spreading across the world. The first case of SARS-Cov-2 infection in Croatia was reported on 25th February 2020, and until the 30th September 2021, as much as 406,398 cases and 8,638 deaths were reported. In Slovenia, the first case of coronavirus infection was reported on 4th March 2020 and until 30th September 2021, the total of 294,343 cases and 4,561 deaths were reported. The paper discusses the COVID-19 mortality in Slovenia and Croatia. The authors will analyze and compare the daily/weekly number of cases, case fatality rate, the number of deaths by age and sex, and excess mortality in comparison to the 2015-2019 period in both countries. The aim of the paper is to determine similarities and differences in COVID-19 mortality trends, discuss the underlying causes, as well as the impact of this mortality on demographic development and life expectancy. It is hypothesised that the unfavourable age structure of Slovenia and Croatia was a catalyst of the COVID-19 excess mortality. In the analyses the authors will use the official mortality data provided by the Croatian Bureau of Statistics, Croatian Institute of Public Health, Statistical Office of the Republic of Slovenia, European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, and Human Mortality Database.

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 Presented in Session P1. Postercafe