Health written question – answered at on 17 January 2012.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the incidence of (a) rickets and (b) osteomalacia was in (i) Poplar and Limehouse constituency, (ii) the London borough of Tower Hamlets and (iii) nationally in the latest period for which figures are available.
The number of episodes of rickets and osteomalacia for the Poplar and Limehouse constituency is not available. Data from the Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) on the number of episodes of rickets and osteomalacia in 2010-11 in the London borough of Tower Hamlets is 13 and nationally is 2,125.
These figures do not equal incidence of disease, but a count of hospital treatments where this has been recorded. The number of episodes does not represent the number of different patients, as a person may be admitted on more than one occasion in any given year.
The data are grouped as shown because the codes used to classify rickets include both ‘active rickets’ and ‘infantile and juvenile osteomalacia’. The codes used to classify osteomalacia include both ‘adult osteomalacia’ and ‘adult rickets’.
Reference should be made to the footnotes when interpreting the data provided.(1,2,3,4,5)
(1) The number of Finished Consultant Episodes with a primary or secondary diagnosis of rickets and osteomalacia have been defined by ICD-10 classification codes E55.0 and M83 for Tower Hamlets primary care trust (PCT) or residence in England 2010-11.
(2) A finished consultant episode (FCE) is a continuous period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. FCEs are counted against the year in which they end.
(3) The number of episodes in which the patient had a (named) primary or secondary diagnosis indicates where this diagnosis was recorded in any of the 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and seven prior to 2002-03) primary and secondary diagnosis fields in a Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) record. Each episode is only counted once, even if the diagnosis is recorded in more than one diagnosis field of the record.
(4) HES are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and PCTs in England and from some independent sector organisations for activity commissioned by the English NHS. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage .and changes in NHS practice.
(5) The strategic health authority (SHA) or PCT of residence is that containing the patient's normal home address. This does not necessarily reflect where the patient was treated as they may have travelled to another SHA/PCT for treatment.
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