Cyprus tops EU for Cesarean sections -Eurostat

Cyprus had the highest rate of cesarean sections in the European Union in 2021, according to data from Eurostat.

The statistics reveal that a total of 1.14 million cesarean sections were performed across the entire European Union during that year.

In most EU countries, there were approximately 150 to 400 cesarean sections per 100,000 residents. Cyprus recorded the highest rate, with 687 cesarean sections per 100,000 residents, followed by Romania (448), Ireland (428), Bulgaria (396), and Poland (371).

Conversely, the lowest rates of cesarean sections were reported in the Netherlands (148 cesarean sections per 100,000 residents), Spain (172), Lithuania (176), Finland (186), and Slovenia (193).

Cataract surgery the most common surgical procedure

Meanwhile, according to Eurostat data, cataract surgery was the most common surgical procedure in the European Union in 2021, with 4.32 million surgeries performed across all EU countries. This figure marked a 4% decrease compared to 2019 when 4.49 million procedures were recorded.

France had the highest rate of cataract surgeries per 100,000 residents in 2021, with 1,417 procedures per 100,000 residents. It was followed by Austria (1,340), Estonia (1,310), Luxembourg (1,286), and the Czech Republic (1,253).

In contrast, Romania had only 261 cataract surgeries per 100,000 residents. Rates were also low in Hungary (480 per 100,000 residents), Malta (509), Poland (528), and Bulgaria (662).

Cyprus ranked 10th in cataract surgeries and had the lowest rates (0.2%) of inpatient procedures. Slovenia (0.4%), Spain (0.7%), and Denmark (0.9%) followed closely.

On the other hand, more than half of cataract surgeries performed on inpatient cases were reported in Bulgaria (55.2%) and Romania (54.5%).