Registrar General Reports on Scotland's Winter Deaths in 2005/06

27 October 2006

The number of extra deaths in Scotland during the winter of 2005/06 was the lowest on record, the Registrar General for Scotland reported today in his Excess Winter Mortality in Scotland, 2005/06 pulication.

There were 1,790 more deaths in the winter months of 2005/06 (December 2005 – March 2006) compared to the shoulder periods of August to November 2005 and April to July 2006.

This total is almost 1,000 fewer than the previous winter’s figure of 2,760 and around one-third of the 5,190 deaths recorded in 1999/2000 during the last serious flu outbreak.

Duncan MacNiven Registrar General for Scotland said:

"Last winter was relatively mild and there was no serious outbreak of flu. There were 1,790 more deaths in the winter months than in the average of the months before and after the winter. That was the lowest on record. It compares with 5,190 additional deaths in the winter of 1999-2000, which saw the last major flu outbreak.

There is not a single common cause behind these deaths. The main causes of additional deaths in winter are respiratory and circulatory diseases. Hypothermia accounts for very few deaths"

Notes for News Editors

1. Comparable information for England and Wales is also being released today by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). More information may be found on their website.

2. Media Enquiries