General Article New analysis shows current picture of diseases which were widespread in the Victorian era

Topic Selected: Global Health
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Hospital admissions for gout increasing, with variation across the country.

New figures published for the first time today paint a current picture of hospital admissions for some diseases that were widespread during the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Hospital admissions for gout are increasing and are highest in patients aged 60 and above, the figures from the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) show.

The report is part of the latest monthly provisional Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) publication and also focusses on tuberculosis (TB), whooping cough, measles and malnutrition. It shows that between May 2013 and April 2014:

  • Gout admissions have increased by a fifth since 2009-10 in England, with almost 5,800 admissions in the 12 months to April 2014. The latest gout admissions figure is a four per cent rise on the previous 12-month period (5,560) and a 22 per cent rise since 2009–10 (4,760).
  • Seven in ten gout admissions were for patients aged 60 and above (4,060 or 7...

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