Last year, cataract surgery was the most performed procedure among our citizens.
According to the "2023 Major Surgical Statistics Annual Report" released by the National Health Insurance Service on the 16th, the number of cataract surgeries performed in the country last year was 638,000, making it the highest among 34 major surgeries. Cataracts are a vision disorder where the lens of the eye becomes cloudy, leading to impaired vision.
Following that, general spine surgery ranked second with 207,000 cases (195,000 people), and hemorrhoid surgery came in third with 152,000 cases (150,000 people).
The number of patients who underwent 34 major surgeries in Korea last year decreased by 0.8% from the previous year to 1,659,000, while the total number of surgeries decreased by 3.5% to 1,996,000. Total surgical medical expenses amounted to 8.44 trillion won, which is an increase of 4.4% from the previous year. The medical expense per surgery was 4.23 million won, a rise of 8.2% from the previous year.
The number of surgeries per 100,000 people was 3,768, with cataract surgeries (1,204) being the most common. Following that were cesarean sections (555) and general spine surgeries (390).
Surgeries with high medical costs included heart surgery at 36.83 million won, coronary artery bypass surgery at 35.25 million won, and stem cell transplantation at 23.23 million won. Surgeries with lower medical costs included hemorrhoid surgery at 1.19 million won, cataract surgery at 1.29 million won, and varicose vein ligation and removal surgery at 1.45 million won. Overall medical expenses were highest for general spine surgery at 1.05 trillion won, followed by knee joint replacement surgery at 839.7 billion won and cataract surgery at 823.4 billion won.
Breaking down surgical patients by age group, the highest number was in the 60s (390,302 people). This was followed by those in their 70s (361,315 people) and 50s (232,521 people). Children under 9 commonly underwent tonsillectomy, teenagers had appendectomy, those in their 20s to 30s often had cesarean sections, individuals in their 40s frequently had hemorrhoid surgery, and those aged 50 and older primarily underwent cataract surgery.
The average length of hospital stay per major surgery was 5.6 days, an increase of 5.4% from the previous year. The longest hospital stays were for stem cell transplantation at 20.3 days, knee joint replacement at 19.5 days, and hip joint replacement at 17.5 days. The shortest hospital stays were for cataract surgery at 1.1 days, varicose vein ligation and removal at 2.1 days, and hemorrhoid surgery at 2.3 days.