Health officials have mapped the top places for alcohol related liver disease
North West and North East have the highest rate of hospital admissions
Greater Manchester, Merseyside and Lancashire had the most admissions
Bath, Gloucestershire, Swindon and Wiltshire had the least admissions
Map paints a ‘powerful picture’ about the effects of alcohol, experts said
Liver disease kills 11,000 people a year in England – and is rising
Overall there were 200 admissions a week between March 2013- April 2014
People living in the North West of England are more likely to be admitted to hospital for alcohol-related liver problems than anywhere else in the country.
A new map shows the places in England which have the highest rates of emergency admissions for alcohol-related liver disease, with the North West and the North East coming out on top.
Greater Manchester, Merseyside and Lancashire were the areas with the highest rates of admissions, according to a map created by the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC).
The map – published by the Health and Social Care Information Centre – displays how many people per 100,000 adults were admitted to hospital in an emergency for alcohol-related liver disease between April 2013 and March 2014 in each area of the country. The North West had the most admissions, the West Country the least
Bath, Gloucestershire, Swindon and Wiltshire in the south had the lowest rates.
Death rates linked to alcohol-related liver disease have risen ‘considerably’ over the last few decades, according to NHS officials.
Liver disease kills 11,000 people a year in England, despite the fact that major causes such as alcohol misuse and obesity are preventable.
The new figures show that hospitals across the country admitted 10,500 cases of alcohol-related liver disease between April 2013 and March 2014.
This equates to just over 200 admissions a week.
In Greater Manchester, the place with the highest rate of admissions, there were 1,010 admissions in total – or just over 19 per week on average.
In Merseyside there were 414 admissions in total – or about eight per week on average- and in Lancashire there were 472 admissions in total – or about nine per week on average.
The places with the lowest rates of admissions were Bath, Gloucestershire, Swindon and Wiltshire where hospitals in the regions 472 admissions in total – or about nine per week on average.
Wessex also had a low rate of admissions, 330 admissions in total – or about six per week on average.
HSCIC chairman Kingsley Manning said: ‘This map paints a powerful picture of one of the many impacts that alcohol has on patients and the NHS in this country.’
Liver disease kills 11,000 people a year in England, despite the fact that major causes such as alcohol misuse and obesity are preventable
Alcohol-related liver disease happens because prolonged drinking over many years can reduce the liver’s ability to regenerate, resulting in serious damage.
The conditions does not usually cause any symptoms until the liver has been severely damaged, which means during tests it is frequently misdiagnosed for other conditions.
Cirrhosis is the final stage of alcohol-related liver disease, which occurs when the liver becomes significantly scarred.
People at this stage have only a 50 per cent chance of living for at least five more years.
The NHS Blood and Transplant Service announced in April this year that alcoholics suffering from severe liver disease will be allowed to have transplants on the NHS for the first time.
But hundreds of alcoholics have been refused liver transplants in the past five years because they have not been able to stop drinking.
The most effective way to prevent the condition is to stop drinking and to stick to the recommended limits, with at least two alcohol-free days a week, NHS guidance recommends.
A helpful animation for the facts and figures on units of alcohol
Source: Daily Mail
