Hospital admissions due to alcohol soar

Hospital admissions linked to alcohol consumption have more than doubled in England since 1995.

207,800 NHS admissions in 2006 / 2007 were due to alcohol being the main or secondary cause, this is compared to 93,500 in 1995 / 1996.

In the past 4 years there has also been a 20% rise in the number of GP prescriptions written for treating alcohol dependency. (source: NHS Information Centre)

The Chief Executive of the NHS Information Centre Tim Straughan said that 'alcohol was placing an ever-increasing burden on the NHS'

The figures quoted above include admissions for alcohol-related conditions

These figures include hospital admissions where alcohol was a contributory factor but not the main cause - i.e. such as falls due to drunkenness, as well as alcohol-related conditions - such as liver disease.

Of hospital admissions that were specifically due to an alcohol-related diagnosis in 2006 / 2007 , almost one in 10 were under 18 years of age.

In 2006 there were 6,500 alcohol related deaths, two thirds were men - this is a 19% rise from the 2001 figures.

The highest rate of alcohol-related admissions was in the north west with 170 per 100,000. The lowest rate was found in the east of England with just 72 per 100,000

Teenage drinking

The report also contained other survey results showing that the percentage of children aged 11 to 15 years old who say they have 'never had an alcoholic drink' had risen 6% in just 5 years. (39% in 2001 to 45% in 2006)

Those children that admitted they were drinking were on average consuming 11.4 units per week, the highest figure recorded by the survey ever

Within the group that was of 15 years of age 30% thought it was fine to get drunk at least once a week

Amongst the adults surveyed in 2006, 72% of the men and 57% of women said that they had consumed an alcoholic drink on at least one day in the previous week. 12% of the men and 7% of the women also reported consuming alcohol on every day of the previous week.

Thursday 22nd May 2008

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