Booze injuries up 28%

The number of people admitted to hospital with alcohol-related injuries has shot up by 28.1 per cent, new figures reveal.

The findings come despite recent efforts by the Government to tackle alcohol abuse.

Injuries covered in the figures include victims of assault, alcohol-related poisoning or accidents and people with liver cirrhosis. The number of men admitted nationwide rose from 714 per 100,000 in 2001/02 to 909 in 2005/06 - an increase of 27.3 percent.

The number of women was up 28.9 per cent, from 396 per 100,000 to 510. The data, from the NHS's Hospital Episodes Survey, means about 353,000 people in England were admitted for emergency treatment in 2005/06 because of drink-related incidents.
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Professor Ian Gilmore, president of the Royal College of Physicians, said the figures were "worrying".

He added: "Together with other evidence, these data show we have a serious alcohol problem and measures to date haven't had any discernible effect."

A Department of Health spokeswoman said nearly two million people were drinking more than recommended safe limits.

She added: "Reducing the harm caused by alcohol misuse is a top government priority. We are working hard to help people take responsibility for their drinking and its impact on their health."

The North East has the highest number of admissions - 15,700 men and 8,800 women per 1,000 in 2005/06. The North West was second with 41,600 men and 23,100 women.

The East of England had the lowest, only 743 men and 425 women.

Nine of the 10 areas with the highest admissions are in the North, with Liverpool, Manchester and Middlesbrough in the top five for each sex.

Most areas with the fewest cases are in the South, including Wokingham in Berkshire and Lewisham, South London.

Professor Mark Bellis of Liverpool John Moores University, who helped compile the figures, out tomorrow, said: "The high levels of excessive drinking are contributing to significant ill-health."

1,708 NUMBER of boozing admissions per 1,000 men in Liverpool last year - the highest. Wokingham, Berks, had the lowest at 435. They had 874 and 262 women admitted respectively.

Mirror