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full screen A new report from the Public Health Agency shows that drug-related deaths increased in Sweden in 2022. Archive image. Photo: Jonas Ekströmer/TT
For several years, drug-related deaths in Sweden decreased. Now that trend is being broken, shows a report from the Public Health Authority.
In 2022, 519 Swedes died as a result of drug poisoning, 69 more than in 2021. This is the first increase in four years.
Accidental overdoses are the most common cause of death. But cases that can be linked to suicide or cases where the poisoning occurred for an unclear reason account for the increase.
In 86 percent of the deaths, opioids were involved, writes the authority.
“That the number of deaths increased after several years of reduction is worrying. We do not know if it is a temporary increase and not what it may be due to, and it is important to follow the development and find out more,” says investigator Mimmi Eriksson Tinghög.