Wiesbaden. Mental health disorders and behavioral conditions were the most common reason for hospital admissions among children and adolescents in 2024.

Depression and stress disorders surge among Germany's youth hospital admissions

Of the approximately 615,300 hospital patients aged 10 to 19, around 116,300 were treated as inpatients for mental health disorders and behavioral conditions, Germany's Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) reported on Wednesday. This accounted for nearly one-fifth (18.9 percent) of all hospital admissions in this age group. By comparison, across all age groups, such diagnoses represented roughly 1.1 million cases—or 5.9 percent—of the total 17.9 million hospital treatments.

After declines in 2018–2020 and again in 2023, the number of children and adolescents hospitalized for mental health and behavioral disorders rose once more in 2024. While there were about 112,500 such cases among 10- to 19-year-olds in 2023, the figure climbed to roughly 116,300 in 2024—a 3.4 percent increase. Overall, the number of inpatient treatments for these conditions in this age group saw a slight rise of 1.3 percent over the same period.

Compared to 20 years ago, hospitalizations for mental health disorders have increased in nearly all age groups, with the sharpest rise among 10- to 19-year-olds: in 2024, 36.5 percent more young people in this group received inpatient care for such conditions than in 2004, when there were around 85,200 cases. Among those aged 80 and older, treatment cases rose by 18.8 percent over the same period, while the 60-to-79 age group saw a 15.7 percent increase. The 20-to-39 cohort experienced a modest rise of 2.4 percent, whereas the 40-to-59 age group was the only one to see a decline, dropping by 8.6 percent. Overall, the number of hospitalizations for mental health disorders grew by 4.0 percent from 2004 to 2024.

The highest number of inpatient treatments for mental health and behavioral disorders among 10- to 19-year-olds occurred in 2017, with approximately 125,500 cases. Across all age groups, the peak was reached in 2014, with around 1.2 million hospitalizations.

Depression is the most common reason for hospitalizing children and adolescents with mental health conditions. In 2024, about 33,900 young people aged 10 to 19 were treated as inpatients for depressive episodes or recurrent depressive disorders, accounting for 29.1 percent of all hospitalizations in this age group for mental health and behavioral issues. Some 11,700 cases (10.1 percent) involved reactions to severe stress and adjustment disorders. Alcohol-related conditions—such as dependency and withdrawal syndromes—were the third most frequent diagnosis, with roughly 9,900 treatments (8.5 percent), followed by eating disorders, which led to about 7,300 hospitalizations (6.3 percent).

Across all age groups, depression was also the leading cause of hospitalization for mental health and behavioral disorders, with approximately 261,600 cases in 2024—nearly a quarter (24.7 percent) of the total. Alcohol misuse accounted for another 21.7 percent, or roughly 229,900 hospital stays, while schizophrenia, with around 80,500 cases, was the third most common diagnosis (7.6 percent).

Depression and alcohol-related mental health conditions consistently rank as the two most frequent diagnoses for inpatient psychiatric treatment across nearly all age groups. The exception is the 80-and-older cohort, where the predominant condition is delirium—an acute confusional state not caused by alcohol or other psychoactive substances. In 2024, delirium accounted for over a third (36.8 percent) of hospitalizations for mental health disorders in this age group, followed by depression (19.8 percent) and dementia (16.8 percent).