Autopsy rate in Estonia

Estonia: Autopsy rate was 17.3% in 2020. ▼ Falling

Latest (2020)
17.3%
Change on year
up 0.6%
World rank
9th
of 39 countries
All-time high
35.0%
in 1994
All-time low
16.7%
in 2018
Years of data
32
1989–2020

Autopsy rate in Estonia, 1989–2020

0102030401989200420201989: 33.5 %1990: 32.1 %1991: 27.6 %1992: 29.8 %1993: 32.1 %1994: 35 %1995: 34.6 %1996: 32.8 %1997: 33 %1998: 33.5 %1999: 34.5 %2000: 33.2 %2001: 33.2 %2002: 30.2 %2003: 29.8 %2004: 28 %2005: 25.8 %2006: 24.6 %2007: 25.5 %2008: 23.7 %2009: 21.9 %2010: 20.5 %2011: 21.3 %2012: 21.1 %2013: 19.9 %2014: 19.2 %2015: 18.7 %2016: 19.4 %2017: 17.4 %2018: 16.7 %2019: 17.2 %2020: 17.3 %

Source: Paratz et al. (2023); World Health Organization (2022) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

In 2020, autopsy rate in Estonia stood at 17.3%.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.6% on the previous year and down 15.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, autopsy rate in Estonia peaked at 35.0% in 1994 and was at its lowest, 16.7%, in 2018.

That places Estonia 9th out of 39 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 32 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 33.5% 33.5% 33.5% 1
1990s 32.5% 27.6% 35.0% 10
2000s 27.6% 21.9% 33.2% 10
2010s 19.1% 16.7% 21.3% 10
2020s 17.3% 17.3% 17.3% 1

Countries ranked near Estonia

  1. 6 Hungary 22.0% compare
  2. 7 Finland 18.2% compare
  3. 10 United Kingdom 15.6% compare
  4. 11 Czechia 13.7% compare
  5. 12 Belarus 13.2% compare

See the full ranking of 39 places →

More reference data data for Estonia

All data for Estonia →

Frequently asked questions

What is autopsy rate in Estonia?
Autopsy rate in Estonia was 17.3% in 2020, according to Paratz et al. (2023); World Health Organization (2022) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest autopsy rate recorded in Estonia?
The highest recorded value was 35.0% in 1994.
What is the lowest autopsy rate recorded in Estonia?
The lowest recorded value was 16.7% in 2018.
How does Estonia rank for autopsy rate?
Estonia ranks 9th out of 39 countries with data for 2020.
Is autopsy rate rising or falling in Estonia?
Over the last ten years it is down 15.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Estonia data come from?
The figures come from Paratz et al. (2023); World Health Organization (2022) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Autopsy rate. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 32 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Autopsy rate
Unit
%
Source
Paratz et al. (2023); World Health Organization (2022) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
39 places, 1,121 data points, 1970–2021
Last refreshed

The share of all deaths for which an autopsy was performed. Autopsies may be used to determine the cause of sudden deaths; when there is a lack of doctors and nurses, medical records, or death certificate training; or for other legal or cultural reasons.