Female drug misuse deaths reach new peak in England and Wales

doi:10.1136/bmj.330.7490.498-d

BMJ 2005;330:498 (5 March), doi:10.1136/bmj.330.7490.498-d

News roundup

Female drug misuse deaths reach new peak in England and Wales

London Adrian O’Dowd

The annual number of deaths in England and Wales relating to drug misuse has fallen slightly, but the number of women dying has risen, new data from the Office for National Statistics show.

The office’s data show that the number of deaths from drug misuse fell from 1565 in 2002 to 1388 in 2003, the lowest figure since 1997 (Health Statistics Quarterly 2005;25:52-9). Although women are still very much a minority in terms of number of deaths, the number has risen to its highest ever level, 346 (compared with 1042 men).

The statistics, published last week, are collected from data such as death certificates and information from coroners and relate to misuse of prescription drugs, over the counter drugs, and illegal substances such as cocaine, heroin, and ecstasy.

Overall, the number of deaths related to drug poisoning fell from 2685 in 2002 to 2445 in 2003.

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