Steep rise in hospital admissions for obesity in England, but fall in admissions for assault by a sharp object

Hospital admissions for obesity in England have risen by 60 per cent in the last year and by 360 per cent compared to five years ago according to figures released today by The NHS Information Centre.

However, admissions for assaults by a sharp object fell for the second year running, as did admissions for injuries from a firearm.

Hospital Episodes Statistics Admitted Patient Care, England 2008/09; shows there were 8,085 admissions for obesity in 2008/09; a 60 per cent rise on 2007/08 (5,056) and a 360 per cent rise since 2003/04 (1,746).

In 2008/09 there were 4,914 admissions for assaults by a sharp object; a six per cent decrease from 2007/08 (5,239) but a three per cent increase since 2003/04 (4,774). There were 1,120 admissions for injuries from a firearm in 2008/09; a five per cent decrease from 2007/08 (1,181) and an 18 per cent decrease since 2003/04 (1,370).

Figures for 2008/09 also show:

  • There were 14.2 million hospital admissions in 2008/09, a five per cent increase on 2007/08 (13.5 million) and a twenty per cent increase on 2003/04 (11.8 million).
  • Just over five million of these were emergency admissions, five per cent (260,000) more than in 2007/08 when emergency admissions stood at 4.8 million.
  • The number of day cases reached 5.2 million in 2008/09 compared to 4.8 million in 2007/08.

NHS Information Centre chief executive Tim Straughan said: “Our figures show continuing increase in NHS admissions to hospitals, which are now in excess of 14 million.

“The large increase in admissions for obesity reflects the growing impact that obesity has on the health of our nation as well as the demands it is placing on limited NHS resources. However, it also reflects the fact that overweight people are resorting to treatments such as bariatric surgery to tackle their health problems.

“This year's reduction in admissions for both assault by a sharp object and injuries by a firearm will be of interest to many and provide important evidence for those assessing the impact of initiatives to tackle violent crime.”

A full version of the report can be viewed at pubs/hes0809.

The report provides links to the HES data tables, which will begin to be uploaded at 09:30am on October 28 2009.

Regional Information is available on request.

ENDS

Notes to editors

  1. The NHS Information Centre is England's authoritative, independent source of health and social care information. It works with more than 300 health and social care providers nationwide to provide the facts and figures that help the NHS and social services run effectively. Its role is to collect data, analyse it and convert it into useful information which helps providers improve their services and supports academics, researchers, regulators and policymakers in their work. The NHS Information Centre also produces a wide range of statistical publications each year across a number of areas including: primary care, health and lifestyles, screening, hospital care, population and geography, social care and workforce and pay statistics.
  2. HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. The quality and coverage of the data have improved over time. These improvements in information submitted by the NHS have been particularly marked in the earlier years and need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. Some of the increase in figures for later years (particularly 2006-07 onwards) may be due to the improvement in the coverage of independent sector activity. Changes in NHS practice also need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. For example, a number of procedures may now be undertaken in outpatient settings and may no longer be accounted for in the HES data. This may account for any reductions in activity over time.
  3. Admissions do not represent the number of people, as one person may be admitted more than once during the year.
  4. HES figures for obesity admissions include people living outside England but who were treated in the English NHS. Figures differ from those in the NHS IC publication ‘Statistics on Obesity, Physical Activity and Diet: England, February 2009', where figures for obesity admissions do not include people living outside England who were treated in the English NHS.
  5. Admission for assault by sharp object refers to the following ICD-10 code: X99; Assault by Sharp Object.
  6. Admission for injuries from a firearm refer to the following ICD-10 codes: W32.- Handgun discharge; W33.- Rifle, shotgun and larger firearm discharge; W34.- Discharge from other and unspecified firearms; X72.- Intentional self-harm by handgun discharge; X73.- Intentional self-harm by rifle, shotgun and larger firearm discharge; X74.- Intentional self-harm by other and unspecified firearm discharge; X93.- Assault by handgun discharge; X94.- Assault by rifle, shotgun and larger firearm discharge; X95.- Assault by other and unspecified firearm discharge; Y22.- Handgun discharge, undetermined intent; Y23.- Rifle, shotgun and larger firearm discharge, undetermined intent; Y24.- Other and unspecified firearm discharge, undetermined intent; Y35.0 Legal intervention involving firearm discharge; Y36.4 War operations involving firearm discharge and other forms of conventional warfare.
  7. Information about admissions because of alcohol is not presently included. Figures on admissions due to alcohol are available to 2007/08 in the NHS IC publication ‘Statistics on Alcohol'
  8. Admission for obesity refers to the HES code E66; Obesity.
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