Hospitalisations
Page highlights
- There were over 1.3 million hospitalisations associated with diabetes in 2023–24 (about 11% of all hospitalisations in Australia).
- Most (74%) diabetes hospitalisations occurred in people aged 60 and over.
Type 1 diabetes hospitalisations
- There were around 69,100 hospitalisations where type 1 diabetes was recorded as the principal and/or additional diagnosis.
- Type 1 diabetes hospitalisation rates as the principal diagnosis were highest among people aged 15–19.
Type 2 diabetes hospitalisations
- There were around 1.2 million hospitalisations with type 2 diabetes recorded as the principal and/or additional diagnosis in 2023–24 with 96% as the additional diagnosis.
- Type 2 diabetes hospitalisations were 1.4 times as high among males as females, overall.
All diabetes hospitalisations
Over 1.3 million hospitalisations were associated with diabetes in 2023–24. This represents about 11% of all hospitalisations in Australia.
Of the 1.3 million hospitalisations associated with diabetes, 4.9% were recorded as the principal diagnosis (the diagnosis largely responsible for hospitalisation) and around 95% were recorded as an additional diagnosis (a coexisting condition with the principal diagnosis or a condition arising during hospitalisation that affects patient management), according to the AIHW National Hospital Morbidity Database (NHMD).
In 2023–24, there were around:
- 64,900 hospitalisations with diabetes as the principal diagnosis. Over two-thirds were due to type 2 diabetes (71%) followed by type 1 diabetes (24%), gestational diabetes (3.3%) and diabetes ‘other or unspecified’ (1.9%).
- 1.3 million hospitalisations with diabetes as an additional diagnosis. Most were due to type 2 diabetes (89%) followed by gestational diabetes (5.4%), type 1 diabetes (4.2%) and diabetes ‘other or unspecified’ (1.0%).
- Hospitalisation data presented here are based on admitted patient episodes of care from the National Hospital Morbidity Database (NHMD), including multiple admissions experienced by the same individual within a period of time.
- For a person living with diabetes, being admitted to hospital may be due to a range of things, including the initial diagnosis of diabetes, treatment for the management of diabetes or complications from diabetes, or an issue unrelated to diabetes itself.
- The health classification used for morbidity reporting in Australia is the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th Revision, Australian Modification (ICD-10-AM) which is used alongside the Australian Classification of Health Interventions (ACHI) which classifies procedures and interventions (refer to Classifications).
- The Australian Coding Standards (ACS) are rules that direct the assignment of ICD-10-AM and ACHI codes to each record. Changes in the classification and coding standards over time impact the ability to monitor and report hospitalisation trends. Current coding standards require diabetes to be coded whenever documented in the medical record, even where diabetes may not be directly related to the hospitalisation. These standards mean that diabetes is more likely to appear in hospitals data compared to some other chronic conditions.
Variation by age and sex
In 2023–24, diabetes hospitalisation rates (principal and/or additional diagnosis):
- were 1.2 times as high among males as females overall
- age-specific rates were higher among females than males in the younger age groups (less than 45 years) and higher among males from age 45 and over
- generally increased with age and were highest in the 85 and over age group for both males and females (33,000 and 20,300 per 100,000 population, respectively) (Figure 1).
Figure 1: Diabetes hospitalisation rates, by diagnosis type, age and sex, 2023–24
The chart shows rates for diabetes as the principal diagnosis increased with age and were highest in those aged 85 and over for both males and females.
Trends over time
The number of hospitalisations with diabetes as the principal and/or additional diagnosis increased by 59% between 2012–13 and 2023–24, from around 837,000 to around 1.3 million.
Between 2012–13 and 2018–19, there was a 29% increase in the age-standardised diabetes hospitalisation rate, followed by an 8.0% drop in 2019–20. The decline in 2019–20 may be associated with aspects of the early COVID-19 pandemic which had a profound impact on the provision of health care services and hospital activity generally (AIHW 2022). For more information see Impact of COVID-19, Hospitalisations. The diabetes hospitalisation rate increased slightly in 2020–21 but remained 4.8% lower than the pre-pandemic peak of 2018–19. The rate declined 2021–22 but has been increasing steadily since then to 2023–24.
The overall trend has displayed a similar pattern among both sexes, with diabetes hospitalisation rates consistently around 1.2 times as high among males as females (Figure 2).
Figure 2: Diabetes hospitalisation rates, by diagnosis type and sex, 2012–13 to 2023–24
The chart shows hospitalisation rates with diabetes as a principal diagnosis increased gradually between 2012–13 and 2018–19 declining in 2019–20 and have started rising.
| Year | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012–13 | 3,714.0 | 3,004.5 | 3,320.0 |
| 2013–14 | 4,000.6 | 3,263.6 | 3,591.2 |
| 2014–15 | 4,233.1 | 3,484.2 | 3,816.0 |
| 2015–16 | 4,518.0 | 3,720.7 | 4,074.9 |
| 2016–17 | 4,652.4 | 3,847.7 | 4,204.8 |
| 2017–18 | 4,634.4 | 3,901.2 | 4,224.6 |
| 2018–19 | 4,679.4 | 3,953.6 | 4,273.0 |
| 2019–20 | 4,324.3 | 3,617.9 | 3,929.6 |
| 2020–21 | 4,450.1 | 3,774.3 | 4,069.9 |
| 2021–22 | 4,188.3 | 3,618.2 | 3,862.7 |
| 2022–23 | 4,310.4 | 3,667.8 | 3,947.1 |
| 2023–24 | 4,408.2 | 3,719.3 | 4,022.1 |
| Year | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012–13 | 201.8 | 168.1 | 183.0 |
| 2013–14 | 200.8 | 165.7 | 181.3 |
| 2014–15 | 209.3 | 165.9 | 185.5 |
| 2015–16 | 225.2 | 169.0 | 194.6 |
| 2016–17 | 222.4 | 164.5 | 191.2 |
| 2017–18 | 230.0 | 175.8 | 200.7 |
| 2018–19 | 245.7 | 185.8 | 213.3 |
| 2019–20 | 249.2 | 173.9 | 208.9 |
| 2020–21 | 245.1 | 172.3 | 206.1 |
| 2021–22 | 236.7 | 159.4 | 195.6 |
| 2022–23 | 249.4 | 162.7 | 203.3 |
| 2023–24 | 257.4 | 167.1 | 209.3 |
| Year | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012–13 | 3,512.2 | 2,836.4 | 3,137.0 |
| 2013–14 | 3,799.8 | 3,097.9 | 3,409.9 |
| 2014–15 | 4,023.8 | 3,318.3 | 3,630.5 |
| 2015–16 | 4,292.8 | 3,551.8 | 3,880.2 |
| 2016–17 | 4,430.1 | 3,683.2 | 4,013.6 |
| 2017–18 | 4,404.4 | 3,725.4 | 4,023.9 |
| 2018–19 | 4,433.7 | 3,767.8 | 4,059.7 |
| 2019–20 | 4,075.0 | 3,444.0 | 3,720.7 |
| 2020–21 | 4,205.0 | 3,602.0 | 3,863.7 |
| 2021–22 | 3,951.6 | 3,458.7 | 3,667.1 |
| 2022–23 | 4,061.0 | 3,505.1 | 3,743.7 |
| 2023–24 | 4,150.8 | 3,552.2 | 3,812.7 |
Note: Age-standardised to the 2001 Australian Standard Population.
Source:
AIHW National Hospital Morbidity Database
|
Data source overview
The National Hospital Morbidity Database (NHMD) contains records of hospital admissions (separations or hospitalisations) in Australia. However, it cannot be used to determine the number of people representing these hospitalisations. The National Health Data Hub (NHDH) is a linked data asset that includes a unique, de identified person level identifier. This enables multiple hospital separations for an individual to be measured.
The NHDH was used to estimate the average number of diabetes related hospital separations among people admitted with a diagnosis of diabetes (separation to person ratio) for each financial year between 2012–13 and 2023–24. The term separation to person ratio is defined as the number of separations/hospitalisations with diabetes recorded divided by the number of people responsible for these separations. This provides an estimate of the number of hospitalisations per person. This measure provides insights into the person level burden of hospitalisations for diabetes, in addition to reporting at the system level.
This analysis reports on data only for public hospitals due to the limited coverage of the private hospitals in the NHDH. However, the majority of diabetes hospitalisations are recorded in public hospitals. For example, in 2023–24, 67% of all the diabetes hospitalisations, 71% of all type 1 diabetes hospitalisations and 66% of all type 2 diabetes hospitalisations were recorded in public hospitals. Further, hospitals data for Western Australia (WA) and the Northern Territory (NT) are not available in the NHDH. These findings should be interpreted with caution due to these limitations. For further information about the linked data used, see National Health Data Hub.
Hospital separation to person ratio for diabetes (number of hospitalisations per person)
Based on data from the NHDH, in 2023–24, there were around 764,000 hospitalisations with diabetes recorded as a principal and/or additional diagnosis from public hospitals, attributed to about 389,000 people, and equivalent to 2 hospitalisations per person. On average, among people admitted with diabetes, males had more hospitalisations than females, separation to person ratios of 2.1 and 1.9, respectively. In 2023–24, separation to person ratios for diabetes increased with age ranging from 1.4 among people aged 5–9 to 2.2 in those aged 85 and over.
After adjusting for age differences in the population structure, the separation to person ratios for diabetes as a principal diagnosis increased from 1.4 in 2012–13 to 1.5 in 2023–24. This suggests that increase in hospitalisation rates over this period reflects an increase in both prevalence and hospitalisations per person due to high burden of diabetes complications and comorbidities as people with diabetes are living longer (Tomic et al. 2022, 2024; Feleke et al. 2025).
For more information see Measuring hospital separation to person ratios using linked data from NHDH.
Variation by priority population groups
Remoteness area
In 2023–24, after adjusting for differences in the age structure of the population, the diabetes hospitalisation rate (as the principal and/or additional diagnosis) was 2.3 times as high among people living in Remote and very remote areas as those living in Major cities. This disparity was more pronounced among females than males (3.0 and 1.7 times as high, respectively) (Figure 3).
Socioeconomic area
In 2023–24, after adjusting for differences in the age structure of the population, the rate of diabetes hospitalisation (as the principal and/or additional diagnosis) for people living in the lowest socioeconomic areas was twice the rate for those living in the highest socioeconomic areas (Figure 3).
Figure 3: Diabetes hospitalisation rates, principal and/or additional diagnosis, by priority population group and sex, 2023–24
The bar chart shows the age-standardised rates increased with increasing remoteness and socioeconomic disadvantage.
| Remoteness area | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Major cities | 4,309 | 3,487 | 3,844 |
| Inner regional | 4,252 | 3,678 | 3,934 |
| Outer regional | 4,466 | 4,213 | 4,331 |
| Remote and very remote | 7,441 | 10,561 | 8,924 |
| Socioeconomic area | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Group 1 (most disadvantaged) | 5,658 | 5,422 | 5,491 |
| Group 2 | 4,668 | 4,044 | 4,319 |
| Group 3 | 4,204 | 3,452 | 3,784 |
| Group 4 | 3,900 | 3,073 | 3,444 |
| Group 5 (least disadvantaged) | 3,285 | 2,419 | 2,812 |
- Age-standardised to the 2001 Australian Standard Population.
- Includes persons with missing or unassigned information on age and/or sex. Excludes persons whose remoteness area and/or socioeconomic area was missing or unassigned.
- Remoteness is classified according to the Australian Statistical Geography Standard 2021 Remoteness Areas structure based on Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2) of usual residence.
- Socioeconomic groups are classified according to population-based quintiles using the Index of Relative Socio-Economic Disadvantage based on 2021 ASGS Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2) of usual residence.
Source:
AIHW National Hospital Morbidity Database
|
Data source overview
Country of birth
In 2023–24, diabetes hospitalisation rates (as the principal and/or additional diagnosis) varied by country of birth. Two-thirds (66%) of diabetes hospitalisations (where country of birth is available) were for people born in Australia – a rate of 4,700 per 100,000 population.
Of all diabetes hospitalisations among people not born in Australia, the most common regions/countries of birth include North–West Europe (8.7%) and Southern and Eastern Europe (7.5%).
After adjusting for differences in the age structure of the populations, the rate of diabetes hospitalisation for people born in North Africa and the Middle East was 1.3 times the rate for those born in Australia (Figure 4).
Figure 4: Diabetes hospitalisation rates, principal and/or additional diagnosis, by country of birth, 2023–24
The chart shows the age-standardised rates were highest in those born in North Africa and the Middle East, and lowest in those born in North-East Asia.
| Country of birth | Hospitalisations per 100,000 population |
|---|---|
| North Africa and the Middle East | 5,486 |
| Southern and Central Asia | 4,926 |
| Oceania and Antarctica | 4,277 |
| Australia | 4,228 |
| Southern and Eastern Europe | 3,902 |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | 3,301 |
| South-East Asia | 3,082 |
| North-West Europe | 2,880 |
| Americas | 2,730 |
| North-East Asia | 2,089 |
Notes
- Age-standardised to the 2001 Australian Standard Population.
- Includes persons with missing or unassigned information on age and/or sex. Excludes persons whose birth country was not stated or inadequately described.
- Country of birth is classified using major groupings from the Standard Australian Classification of Countries (SACC) 2nd edition.
Source:
AIHW National Hospital Morbidity Database
|
Data source overview
For information for First Nations people see chapter for First Nations people.
Type 1 diabetes hospitalisations
There were around 69,100 hospitalisations where type 1 diabetes was recorded as the principal and/or additional diagnosis in 2023–24, with 15,400 (22%) as a principal diagnosis and 53,800 (78%) as an additional diagnosis.
Variation by age and sex
In 2023–24, type 1 diabetes hospitalisation rates (as the principal and/or additional diagnosis):
- generally increased with increasing age, with 65% of type 1 diabetes hospitalisations occurring in people aged 40 and over
- were highest among males and females aged 70–74 (500 and 395 per 100,000 population, respectively) (Figure 5)
- were higher among females than males, after controlling for differences in the age structures of the populations (Figure 6).
Where type 1 diabetes was the main reason for the hospitalisation (principal diagnosis), type 1 diabetes hospitalisation rates were:
- highest among males and females aged 15–19 (78 and 87 per 100,000 population, respectively) (Figure 5)
- higher among males than females, after controlling for the age structures of the populations (Figure 6).
Figure 5: Type 1 diabetes hospitalisation rates by diagnosis type, age and sex, 2023–24
The chart shows rates for type 1 diabetes hospitalisations peaked in the 70–74 age group for both males and females.
Trends over time
Between 2012–13 and 2023–24, there was a 28% increase in the number of hospitalisations with a principal and/or additional diagnosis of type 1 diabetes (from 53,900 to 69,100 hospitalisations).
After adjusting for age, type 1 diabetes hospitalisation rates (principal and/or additional diagnosis) increased steadily from 2012–13 peaking in 2018–19, fluctuated between 2019–20 and 2021–22 and have been increasing steadily since then to 2023–24 (Figure 6).
Figure 6: Type 1 diabetes hospitalisation rates, by diagnosis type and sex, 2012–13 to 2023–24
The chart shows rates for type 1 diabetes as the principal or additional diagnosis steadily increasing between 2012–13 and 2023–24 with the rates slightly higher among females than males.
| Year | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012–13 | 225.3 | 234.2 | 229.0 |
| 2013–14 | 226.3 | 236.9 | 230.9 |
| 2014–15 | 233.1 | 241.5 | 236.6 |
| 2015–16 | 246.3 | 249.0 | 246.9 |
| 2016–17 | 247.8 | 256.4 | 251.4 |
| 2017–18 | 245.9 | 255.3 | 249.9 |
| 2018–19 | 249.0 | 259.8 | 253.7 |
| 2019–20 | 232.6 | 243.2 | 237.2 |
| 2020–21 | 235.7 | 250.4 | 242.2 |
| 2021–22 | 225.5 | 243.0 | 233.5 |
| 2022–23 | 230.3 | 246.1 | 237.6 |
| 2023–24 | 237.5 | 246.8 | 241.6 |
| Year | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012–13 | 61.4 | 66.6 | 63.8 |
| 2013–14 | 58.1 | 63.2 | 60.5 |
| 2014–15 | 57.8 | 64.7 | 61.1 |
| 2015–16 | 62.3 | 66.0 | 64.0 |
| 2016–17 | 63.6 | 65.7 | 64.5 |
| 2017–18 | 63.4 | 66.9 | 65.0 |
| 2018–19 | 66.5 | 68.1 | 67.1 |
| 2019–20 | 66.2 | 65.8 | 65.8 |
| 2020–21 | 60.2 | 61.2 | 60.5 |
| 2021–22 | 59.1 | 58.0 | 58.4 |
| 2022–23 | 59.0 | 56.3 | 57.5 |
| 2023–24 | 59.0 | 55.6 | 57.2 |
| Year | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012–13 | 164.0 | 167.6 | 165.2 |
| 2013–14 | 168.1 | 173.6 | 170.3 |
| 2014–15 | 175.3 | 176.8 | 175.5 |
| 2015–16 | 184.1 | 183.0 | 182.9 |
| 2016–17 | 184.2 | 190.7 | 186.8 |
| 2017–18 | 182.5 | 188.5 | 184.9 |
| 2018–19 | 182.5 | 191.8 | 186.6 |
| 2019–20 | 166.4 | 177.4 | 171.3 |
| 2020–21 | 175.4 | 189.3 | 181.7 |
| 2021–22 | 166.3 | 185.0 | 175.1 |
| 2022–23 | 171.3 | 189.7 | 180.0 |
| 2023–24 | 178.6 | 191.2 | 184.4 |
Note: Age-standardised to the 2001 Australian Standard Population.
Source:
AIHW National Hospital Morbidity Database
|
Data source overview
Hospital separation to person ratio for type 1 diabetes (number of hospitalisations per person)
According to data from the NHDH, in 2023–24, there were around 43,000 hospitalisations with type 1 diabetes recorded as a principal and/or additional diagnosis from public hospitals, attributed to 22,300 people, and equivalent to 1.9 hospitalisations per person. On average, among people admitted with type 1 diabetes, females had more hospitalisations for type 1 diabetes than males (separation to person ratios of 2.0 and 1.9, respectively). In 2023–24, separation to person ratios for type 1 diabetes were highest among people aged 25–69 (ratios of 2.0 to 2.2) compared with the other age groups.
After adjusting for age differences in the population structure, the separation to person ratios for type 1 diabetes increased from 1.8 in 2012–13 to 1.9 in 2023–24. This suggests that increase in hospitalisation rates over this period reflects an increase in hospitalisations per person due to high burden of diabetes complications and comorbidities as people with type 1 diabetes are living longer (Tomic et al. 2024; Feleke et al. 2025).
For definitions and interpretation of these findings, see Measuring hospital separation to person ratios using linked data from NHDH.
Variation by priority population groups
Remoteness area
In 2023–24, type 1 diabetes hospitalisation rates (as the principal and/or additional diagnosis) varied by remoteness area. Age-standardised rates for people living in Major cities, Inner regional and Outer regional areas were 1.1, 1.5 and 1.4 times, respectively, the rate for those living in Remote and very remote areas (Figure 7).
Socioeconomic area
In 2023–24, type 1 diabetes hospitalisation rates (as the principal and/or additional diagnosis) increased with increasing levels of socioeconomic disadvantage. The age-standardised rate for people living in the lowest socioeconomic areas was 1.5 times the rate for those living in the highest socioeconomic areas. This pattern was similar for males and females (Figure 7).
Figure 7: Type 1 diabetes hospitalisation rates, principal and/or additional diagnosis, by priority population group and sex, 2023–24
The chart shows rates increased with increasing socioeconomic disadvantage and were lowest in Remote and very remote areas.
| Remoteness area | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Major cities | 218.9 | 226.1 | 221.9 |
| Inner regional | 297.0 | 322.5 | 309.0 |
| Outer regional | 280.7 | 275.6 | 277.5 |
| Remote and very remote | 181.8 | 223.0 | 202.0 |
| Socioeconomic area | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Group 1 (most disadvantaged) | 276.2 | 295.9 | 285.0 |
| Group 2 | 255.9 | 275.3 | 265.0 |
| Group 3 | 241.0 | 249.1 | 244.1 |
| Group 4 | 215.4 | 220.3 | 217.7 |
| Group 5 (least disadvantaged) | 187.0 | 185.9 | 186.2 |
- Age-standardised to the 2001 Australian Standard Population.
- Includes persons with missing or unassigned information on age and/or sex. Excludes persons whose remoteness area and/or socioeconomic area was missing or unassigned.
- Remoteness is classified according to the Australian Statistical Geography Standard 2021 Remoteness Areas structure based on Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2) of usual residence.
- Socioeconomic groups are classified according to population-based quintiles using the Index of Relative Socio-Economic Disadvantage based on 2021 ASGS Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2) of usual residence.
Source:
AIHW National Hospital Morbidity Database
|
Data source overview
Country of birth
A person’s country of birth commonly affects the risk of developing type 1 diabetes – this can often be attributed to the interaction of genetic, environmental and cultural factors (Hjern and Söderström 2008).
In 2023–24, type 1 diabetes hospitalisation rates (as the principal and/or additional diagnosis) varied by country of birth. Most (83%) hospitalisations for type 1 diabetes were for people born in Australia. Of all hospitalisations, the most common regions/countries of birth other than Australia include North–West Europe (6.6%) and Oceania and Antarctica (2.8%).
After adjusting for differences in the age structure of the populations, type 1 diabetes hospitalisation rates were highest for people born in Australia and lowest for those born in North–East Asia (Figure 8).
Figure 8: Type 1 diabetes hospitalisation rates, principal and/or additional diagnosis, by country of birth, 2023–24
The chart shows rates were highest for people born in Australia and lowest for those born in North-East Asia, 310 and 33 per 100,000 population, respectively.
| Country of birth | Hospitalisations per 100,000 population |
|---|---|
| Australia | 310.0 |
| North-West Europe | 216.0 |
| Oceania and Antarctica | 200.8 |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | 177.4 |
| North Africa and the Middle East | 138.0 |
| Americas | 133.1 |
| Southern and Eastern Europe | 109.3 |
| Southern and Central Asia | 65.5 |
| South-East Asia | 47.6 |
| North-East Asia | 33.4 |
Notes
- Age-standardised to the 2001 Australian Standard Population.
- Includes persons with missing or unassigned information on age and/or sex. Excludes persons whose birth country was not stated or inadequately described.
- Country of birth is classified using major groupings from the Standard Australian Classification of Countries (SACC) 2nd edition.
Source:
AIHW National Hospital Morbidity Database
|
Data source overview
For information for First Nations people see chapter for First Nations people.
Type 1 diabetes hospitalisations with diabetes complications
There are a number of acute or chronic diabetes complications associated with hospitalisations for people with type 1 diabetes. In 2023–24, suboptimal diabetic control, kidney, eye and neurological complications, and ketoacidosis were the most common hospital complications found for people with type 1 diabetes.
Issues with diabetes complications
Diabetes complications which are detected in the hospital setting are considered material to the hospitalisation and do not represent all complications a patient may have or the number of people with diabetes affected by these complications (prevalence). People who are hospitalised with diabetes are more likely to represent complex cases and are more likely to suffer from one or more diabetes complications than people who are not hospitalised.
Further research is required to fully understand the prevalence of these complications in the broader diabetes community at the national level. The accuracy of diagnosis of some complications may also be an issue. In recent research by Davis and Davis (2019) assessing the incidence of diabetic ketoacidosis in the Fremantle Diabetes Study, incorrect coding rates of 39% were found for initial episodes and 41.7% for recurrent episodes.
In 2023–24, there were:
- 13,400 hospitalisations with kidney complications (50 per 100,000 population)
- 11,300 hospitalisations with eye complications (42 per 100,000 population)
- 11,000 hospitalisations with suboptimal diabetic control (41 per 100,000 population)
- 9,800 hospitalisations with neurological complications (36 per 100,000 population)
- 9,400 hospitalisations with ketoacidosis (35 per 100,000 population).
Variation by age and sex
In 2023–24:
- hospitalisations with associated diabetes complications were generally higher in Australians aged 50 and over, except for ketoacidosis which was higher in people aged below 50 (Figure 9)
- among those aged 0–24, females were 1.3 times as likely to be hospitalised with ketoacidosis as males.
Figure 9: Hospitalisations with associated diabetes complications for type 1 diabetes, by age, 2023–24
The chart shows rates for most complications were highest in those aged 50 and over, except for ketoacidosis with rates highest in those aged 0–24.
| Diabetes complication | 0–24 | 25–49 | 50–74 | 75+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kidney complication | 4.9 | 46.7 | 89.5 | 98.2 |
| Eye complication | 1.7 | 39.6 | 79.5 | 79.1 |
| Poor control | 21.0 | 43.8 | 52.5 | 64.7 |
| Neurological complication | 2.1 | 38.9 | 64.8 | 57.9 |
| Hypoglycaemia | 13.1 | 28.0 | 39.2 | 59.0 |
| Ketoacidosis | 38.4 | 37.8 | 28.3 | 28.6 |
| Circulatory complication | 0.1 | 8.9 | 38.7 | 36.7 |
| Foot ulcer | 0.3 | 13.0 | 25.4 | 20.6 |
| Hyperosmolarity | 0.8 | 1.7 | 1.8 | 3.3 |
Source:
AIHW National Hospital Morbidity Database
|
Data source overview
After adjusting for differences in the age structure of the populations:
- males were more likely to have hospitalisations associated with chronic diabetes complications including foot ulcer, circulatory, kidney, neurological and eye complications
- circulatory complications and foot ulcers were 2.0 and 1.9 times as high, respectively, in males compared with females
- females were slightly more likely than males to have hospitalisations associated with acute complications including ketoacidosis (Figure 10).
Figure 10: Hospitalisations with associated diabetes complications for type 1 diabetes, by sex, 2023–24
The chart shows that for most complications, rates are higher among males except for ketoacidosis and hypoglycaemia where rates are higher among females.
| Diabetes complication | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kidney complication | 48.3 | 42.4 | 45.2 |
| Poor control | 40.0 | 38.3 | 39.0 |
| Eye complication | 40.2 | 35.6 | 37.8 |
| Ketoacidosis | 32.8 | 37.3 | 35.0 |
| Neurological complication | 34.7 | 32.4 | 33.5 |
| Hypoglycaemia | 26.7 | 27.6 | 27.1 |
| Circulatory complication | 19.2 | 9.8 | 14.3 |
| Foot ulcer | 16.3 | 8.3 | 12.2 |
| Hyperosmolarity | 1.7 | 1.3 | 1.5 |
Note: Age-standardised to the 2001 Australian Standard Population.
Source:
AIHW National Hospital Morbidity Database
|
Data source overview
Type 2 diabetes hospitalisations
There were almost 1.2 million hospitalisations with type 2 diabetes recorded as the principal and/or additional diagnosis in 2023–24, with 46,000 (3.9% of type 2 diabetes hospitalisations) as the principal diagnosis and 1.1 million (96% of type 2 diabetes hospitalisations) as an additional diagnosis.
Variation by age and sex
In 2023–24, type 2 diabetes hospitalisation rates (as the principal and/or additional diagnosis):
- generally increased with increasing age, with most (87%) hospitalisations occurring in people aged 55 and over
- were highest among males and females aged 85 and over (32,500 and 19,900 per 100,000 population, respectively) (Figure 11)
- were higher among males than females from age 45 onwards
- were 1.4 times as high for males as females, after adjusting for differences in the age structure of the population (Figure 12).
Where type 2 diabetes was the main reason for the hospitalisation (principal diagnosis), the age-standardised hospitalisation rate for males was twice the rate for females (Figure 12).
Figure 11: Type 2 diabetes hospitalisation rates by diagnosis type, age and sex, 2023–24
The chart shows rates with type 2 diabetes as the principal diagnosis were highest in those aged 85 and over for both males and females at 1,200 and 505 per 100,000 population, respectively.
Trends over time
After adjusting for age, type 2 diabetes hospitalisation rates (principal and/or additional diagnosis) increased steadily by around 20% between 2012–13 and 2023–24. Rates peaked in 2018–19, then fluctuated until 2021–22 and have increased steadily since then with a similar trend seen among both sexes. The rates among males were consistently around 1.4 times as high compared with females (Figure 12).
Figure 12: Type 2 diabetes hospitalisation rates by diagnosis type and sex, 2012–13 to 2023–24
The chart shows rates for all diagnosis types of type 2 diabetes increased between 2012–13 and 2023–24 for both males and females.
| Year | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012–13 | 3,436 | 2,433 | 2,897 |
| 2013–14 | 3,720 | 2,647 | 3,144 |
| 2014–15 | 3,946 | 2,828 | 3,346 |
| 2015–16 | 4,216 | 3,005 | 3,568 |
| 2016–17 | 4,344 | 3,086 | 3,671 |
| 2017–18 | 4,332 | 3,111 | 3,679 |
| 2018–19 | 4,374 | 3,136 | 3,712 |
| 2019–20 | 4,042 | 2,837 | 3,398 |
| 2020–21 | 4,163 | 2,924 | 3,502 |
| 2021–22 | 3,915 | 2,729 | 3,282 |
| 2022–23 | 4,030 | 2,830 | 3,389 |
| 2023–24 | 4,119 | 2,888 | 3,463 |
| Year | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012–13 | 137 | 76 | 105 |
| 2013–14 | 140 | 75 | 105 |
| 2014–15 | 148 | 80 | 112 |
| 2015–16 | 159 | 81 | 118 |
| 2016–17 | 155 | 77 | 114 |
| 2017–18 | 163 | 83 | 121 |
| 2018–19 | 175 | 89 | 130 |
| 2019–20 | 179 | 85 | 129 |
| 2020–21 | 180 | 88 | 132 |
| 2021–22 | 173 | 80 | 124 |
| 2022–23 | 185 | 86 | 133 |
| 2023–24 | 193 | 91 | 139 |
| Year | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012–13 | 3,299 | 2,357 | 2,792 |
| 2013–14 | 3,580 | 2,572 | 3,039 |
| 2014–15 | 3,798 | 2,748 | 3,234 |
| 2015–16 | 4,057 | 2,924 | 3,450 |
| 2016–17 | 4,190 | 3,009 | 3,557 |
| 2017–18 | 4,169 | 3,028 | 3,558 |
| 2018–19 | 4,199 | 3,047 | 3,582 |
| 2019–20 | 3,863 | 2,752 | 3,269 |
| 2020–21 | 3,983 | 2,836 | 3,370 |
| 2021–22 | 3,742 | 2,649 | 3,158 |
| 2022–23 | 3,845 | 2,744 | 3,256 |
| 2023–24 | 3,926 | 2,797 | 3,324 |
Note: Age-standardised to the 2001 Australian Standard Population.
Source:
AIHW National Hospital Morbidity Database
|
Data source overview
Hospital separations to person ratio for type 2 diabetes (number of hospitalisations per person)
According to data from the NHDH, in 2023–24, there were around 661,000 hospitalisations with type 2 diabetes recorded as a principal and/or additional diagnosis from public hospitals, attributed to 331,000 people, and equivalent to 2.0 hospitalisations per person. On average, among people admitted with type 2 diabetes, males had more hospitalisations for type 2 diabetes than females (separation to person ratios of 2.1 and 1.9, respectively). In 2023–24, separation ratios for type 2 diabetes increased with age with people aged 0–39 having on average 1.7 hospitalisations while those aged 85 and over having 2.2 hospitalisations.
After adjusting for age differences in the population structure, the separation to person ratios for type 2 diabetes as a principal diagnosis increased from 1.2 in 2012–13 to 1.4 in 2023–24. This suggests that increase in hospitalisation rates over this period reflects an increase in both prevalence and hospitalisations per person due to high burden of diabetes complications and comorbidities as people with type 2 diabetes are living longer (Tomic et al. 2022; Feleke et al. 2025).
For definitions and interpretation of these findings, see Measuring hospital separation to person ratios using linked data from NHDH.
Variation by priority population groups
Remoteness area
In 2023–24, the age-standardised hospitalisation rate for type 2 diabetes (as the principal and/or additional diagnosis) for people living in Remote and very remote areas was 2.5 times the rates for those living in Major cities and Inner regional areas, and 2.3 times the rate for those in Outer regional areas (Figure 13). These variations were more pronounced among females than males.
See Geographical variation in disease: diabetes, cardiovascular and chronic kidney disease for more information on type 2 diabetes hospitalisations by state/territory, Population Health Network and Population Health Area.
Socioeconomic area
In 2023–24, age-standardised hospitalisation rates for type 2 diabetes (as the principal and/or additional diagnosis) increased with increasing levels of socioeconomic disadvantage. People living in the lowest socioeconomic areas were twice as likely to have type 2 diabetes hospitalisations as those living in the highest socioeconomic areas (Figure 13).
Figure 13: Type 2 diabetes hospitalisation rates, principal and/or additional diagnosis, by priority population group and sex, 2023–24
The chart shows rates were highest for those in the lowest socioeconomic areas and Remote and very remote areas.
| Remoteness area | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Major cities | 4,037 | 2,712 | 3,322 |
| Inner regional | 3,909 | 2,728 | 3,289 |
| Outer regional | 4,135 | 3,123 | 3,627 |
| Remote and very remote | 7,194 | 9,560 | 8,310 |
| Socioeconomic area | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Group 1 (most disadvantaged) | 5,319 | 4,315 | 4,777 |
| Group 2 | 4,360 | 3,153 | 3,723 |
| Group 3 | 3,918 | 2,630 | 3,230 |
| Group 4 | 3,637 | 2,332 | 2,942 |
| Group 5 (least disadvantaged) | 3,051 | 1,859 | 2,412 |
- Age-standardised to the 2001 Australian Standard Population.
- Includes persons with missing or unassigned information on age and/or sex. Excludes persons whose remoteness area and/or socioeconomic area was missing or unassigned.
- Remoteness is classified according to the Australian Statistical Geography Standard 2021 Remoteness Areas structure based on Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2) of usual residence.
- Socioeconomic groups are classified according to population-based quintiles using the Index of Relative Socio-Economic Disadvantage based on 2021 ASGS Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2) of usual residence.
Source:
AIHW National Hospital Morbidity Database
|
Data source overview
Country of birth
A person’s country of birth commonly affects their risk of developing type 2 diabetes, however, the degree to which this is influenced by migration or ethnicity is unclear. Potential reasons may include genetic predisposition, potential exposure to risk factors in the country of origin, factors related to the migration process and/or changes in lifestyle behaviours following migration (Zhang et al. 2020).
In 2023–24, 66% of hospitalisations with type 2 diabetes as the principal and/or additional diagnosis were for people born in Australia (771,000 hospitalisations). Type 2 diabetes hospitalisation rates varied by country of birth, with the age-standardised rate for people born in Northern Africa and the Middle East being 1.4 times the rate for those born in Australia. Hospitalisation rates were lowest among those born in North–East Asia (Figure 14).
Figure 14: Type 2 diabetes hospitalisation rates, principal and/or additional diagnosis, by country of birth, 2023–24
The chart shows rates were highest for people born in North Africa and the Middle East, and lowest for those born in North-East Asia (5,000 and 1,800 per 100,000 population, respectively).
| Country of birth | Hospitalisations per 100,000 population |
|---|---|
| North Africa and the Middle East | 4,953 |
| Southern and Central Asia | 4,376 |
| Oceania and Antarctica | 3,748 |
| Australia | 3,621 |
| Southern and Eastern Europe | 3,578 |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | 2,787 |
| South-East Asia | 2,677 |
| North-West Europe | 2,472 |
| Americas | 2,434 |
| North-East Asia | 1,823 |
Notes
- Age-standardised to the 2001 Australian Standard Population.
- Includes persons with missing or unassigned information on age and/or sex. Excludes persons whose birth country was not stated or inadequately described.
- Country of birth is classified using major groupings from the Standard Australian Classification of Countries (SACC) 2nd edition.
Source:
AIHW National Hospital Morbidity Database
|
Data source overview
For information for First Nations people see chapter for First Nations people.
Type 2 diabetes hospital procedures
People with diabetes may require surgery to help manage their diabetes or treat the complications of diabetes.
According to the National Hospital Morbidity Database (NHMD), there were around 3,300 hospitalisations for weight loss procedures and 7,000 for lower limb amputations among people with type 2 diabetes in 2023–24 (12 and 26 per 100,000 population, respectively).
Weight loss reduces the risk of developing type 2 diabetes and reduces long-term complications associated with type 2 diabetes and obesity. Lifestyle interventions are the primary method for reducing weight, but in some people weight management pharmacotherapy or weight loss (bariatric) surgery is an effective intervention for long-term weight loss and maintenance (Lee and Dixon 2017; ADAPPC 2025).
Diabetes can cause damage to the nerves in the feet which reduces blood circulation and increases risk of infection and foot ulcers. Diabetic foot ulcers can lead to hospitalisation and may require lower limb amputation (Reardon et al. 2020).
Variation by age and sex
In 2023–24, rates of hospitalisations for obesity surgery among people living with type 2 diabetes were:
- twice as high in females compared with males after controlling for age (Figure 15)
- highest in people aged 55–59 (33 per 100,000 population), 7 times as high as those aged 0–39 and 111 times the rate for the 85 and over age group.
Rates of hospitalisations for lower limb amputation among people living with type 2 diabetes:
- were 3.9 times as high in males compared with females after controlling for age (Figure 15)
- generally increased with increasing age, with 75% of lower limb amputations undertaken in people aged 60 and above
- were highest among people aged 80–84 (113 per 100,000 population), which is around 140 times the rate for those aged 0–39 (0.8 per 100,000 population).
Counting hospital procedures
The number and rate of hospitalisations for procedures reported in this section should be interpreted with caution. Hospital procedures reported using the NHMD may represent many individuals undergoing these procedures, or in some cases, a single individual undergoing multiple procedures over time as they require further follow-up and treatment.
Figure 15: Procedures for managing type 2 diabetes, by sex, 2023–24
The chart shows rates of hospitalisations for lower limb amputation were higher for males but rates for obesity surgery were higher for females.
| Procedure | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lower limb amputation | 34.4 | 8.9 | 21.0 |
| Obesity surgery | 7.9 | 15.9 | 11.9 |
Notes
- Age-standardised to the 2001 Australian Standard Population.
- Obesity surgery includes primary or initial procedures for weight loss surgery and procedures that are described as adjustments, revisions, removals and other procedures.
Source:
AIHW National Hospital Morbidity Database
|
Data source overview
Type 2 diabetes hospitalisations with diabetes complications
Several acute or chronic diabetes complications are associated with hospitalisations for people living with type 2 diabetes. In 2023–24, kidney, eye, neurological, circulatory and poor diabetes control were the most common hospital complications found among people living with type 2 diabetes.
In 2023–24, there were:
- 259,000 hospitalisations with kidney complications (959 per 100,000 population)
- 109,000 hospitalisations with eye complications (404 per 100,000 population)
- 89,400 hospitalisations with neurological complications (332 per 100,000 population)
- 68,800 hospitalisations with circulatory complications (255 per 100,000 population)
- 61,900 hospitalisations with poor diabetes control (230 per 100,000 population).
Variation by age and sex
In 2023–24:
- kidney complications were the most reported complication in both males and females with type 2 diabetes
- the rate of hospitalisation with associated complication for type 2 diabetes increased with age and was highest among people aged 80 and over for all complications (Figure 16)
- type 2 diabetes complications were reported 1.4 to 3.1 times more frequently among males compared with females, after controlling for age (Figure 17).
Figure 16: Hospitalisations with associated diabetes complications for type 2 diabetes, by age, 2023–24
The chart shows the least recorded complications among people aged 80 and over were hyperosmolarity and ketoacidosis.
| Diabetes complication | 0–39 | 40–59 | 60–79 | 80+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kidney complication | 26.0 | 485.3 | 2558.0 | 8121.6 |
| Eye complication | 8.3 | 191.9 | 1402.1 | 2144.2 |
| Neurological complication | 8.0 | 215.6 | 995.3 | 2077.6 |
| Circulatory complication | 2.4 | 110.6 | 785.5 | 1877.1 |
| Poor control | 26.9 | 233.5 | 608.4 | 1047.0 |
| Foot ulcer | 5.5 | 135.6 | 440.1 | 713.8 |
| Hypoglycaemia | 4.6 | 54.2 | 304.7 | 833.0 |
| Ketoacidosis | 3.4 | 35.9 | 107.2 | 167.8 |
| Hyperosmolarity | 0.9 | 13.6 | 62.1 | 238.1 |
Source:
AIHW National Hospital Morbidity Database
|
Data source overview
After adjusting for differences in the age structure of the populations:
- males had higher rates for all complications than females
- rates were 3.1 times as high for males compared with females for foot ulcer, 2.9 times as high for circulatory complications, 1.9 times as high for neurological complications, and 1.8 times as high for hyperosmolarity (Figure 17).
Figure 17: Hospitalisations with associated diabetes complications for type 2 diabetes, by sex, 2023–24
The chart shows that for both sexes, kidney complication was the most recorded and hyperosmolarity the least recorded complications.
| Diabetes complication | Male | Female | Persons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kidney complication | 908.0 | 591.9 | 737.1 |
| Eye complication | 366.2 | 265.3 | 312.6 |
| Neurological complication | 347.5 | 180.4 | 259.6 |
| Circulatory complication | 300.8 | 102.0 | 194.6 |
| Poor control | 226.8 | 158.1 | 190.4 |
| Foot ulcer | 186.8 | 59.6 | 119.8 |
| Hypoglycaemia | 99.8 | 70.1 | 83.7 |
| Ketoacidosis | 37.1 | 25.4 | 31.0 |
| Hyperosmolarity | 25.9 | 14.4 | 19.7 |
Note: Age-standardised to the 2001 Australian Standard Population.
Source:
AIHW National Hospital Morbidity Database
|
Data source overview
ADAPPC (American Diabetes Association Professional Practice Committee) (2025) 'Obesity and Weight Management for the Prevention and Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes: Standards of Care in Diabetes–2025', Diabetes Care, 48 (Supplement_1):S167–180, doi:10.2337/dc25-S008.
AIHW (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare) (2017) Burden of lower limb amputations due to diabetes in Australia: Australian Burden of Disease Study 2011, AIHW, Australian Government, accessed 4 March 2022.
AIHW (2022) Australia's hospitals at a glance, AIHW, Australian Government, accessed 14 December 2022.
Davis TM and Davis W (2020) 'Incidence and associates of diabetic ketoacidosis in a community-based cohort: the Fremantle Diabetes Study Phase II', BMJ Open Diabetes Research and Care, 8(1):e000983, doi:10.1136/bmjdrc-2019-000983.
Feleke BE, Salim A, Magliano DJ, Shaw JE (2025), ‘Total and excess bed-days in people with diabetes in Australia’, Diabetic medicine, 42(12):e70118, doi:10.1111/dme.70118.
Hjern A and Söderström U (2008) 'Parental country of birth is a major determinant of childhood type 1 diabetes in Sweden', Pediatric diabetes, 9(1):35-9, doi:10.1111/j.1399-5448.2007.00267.x.
Lee PC and Dixon J (2017) 'Bariatric-metabolic surgery: A guide for the primary care physician', Australian Family Physician, 46(7): 465-471, PMID:28697289.
Reardon R, Simring D, Kim B, Mortensen J, Williams D and Leslie A (2020) 'The diabetic foot ulcer', Australian Journal of General Practice, 49(5): 250-255, doi:10.31128/AJGP-11-19-5161.
Tomic D, Salim A, Morton JI, Magliano DJ, Shaw JE (2022), ‘Reasons for hospitalisation in Australians with type 2 diabetes compared to the general population, 2010-2017’, Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice, 194:110143, doi:10.1016/j.diabres.2022.110143.
Tomic D, Craig ME, Magliano DJ, Shaw JE (2024), ‘Reasons for hospitalisation in youth with type 1 diabetes, 2010–2019’, Diabetic medicine, 41:e15218. doi:10.1111/dme.15218.
Zhang H, Rogers K, Sukkar L, Jun M, Kang A, Young T, Campain A, Cass A, Chow CK, Comino E, Foote C, Gallagher M, Knight J, Liu B, Lung T, McNamara M, Peiris D, Pollock C, Sullivan D, Wong G and Hockman C (2020) 'Prevalence, incidence and risk factors of diabetes in Australian adults aged ≥45 years: A cohort study using linked routinely-collected data', Journal of Clinical & Translational Endocrinology, volume 22, doi:10.1016/j.jcte.2020.100240.