THE number of hospital admissions for alcoholic-related liver disease is on the increase in large parts of the Bradford district, new figures have revealed.

Emergency admissions in the Bradford Districts Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) area, which covers Bingley, Shipley, Saltaire, Heaton and Tong, has risen from a rate of 27.6 per 100,000 GP-registered patients, aged 18 or above, between January and December last year, to 30.3 at the end of March.

In the Airedale, Wharfedale, and Craven CCG area, including Keighley, Ilkley and Skipton, the rate increased from 21.1 to 27.2 per 100,000 patients.

The figures in the Bradford City CCG area, which covers the city centre, fell from a rate of 35.6 to 26.5 per 100,000 patients.

The data relates to 76 patients observed in the Districts CCG, 33 in the Airedale, Wharfedale and Craven CCG, and 20 in the City CCG.

All figures for the Bradford district are above the national average rate for England at 24.1 per 100,000 patients, but below the average rate for West Yorkshire, which stood at 35.3 per 100,000 patients at the end of March this year, the fifth worst rate in England.

In 2012, the total cost of alcohol-related treatment across Bradford was estimated at £35 million, including £6.7m in A&E attendances and £7m in outpatients appointments, equating to £88 per adult.

Figures also showed that 138 people had died from alcohol-related causes, with 60 deaths due to chronic liver disease.

Dr Paul Southern, a consultant hepatologist at Bradford Royal Infirmary, has previously highlighted excessive drinking as causing a "worrying" rise in cases of liver cancer, as well as placing a huge burden on hospital finances.

"We are seeing more cases of liver cancer than we used to and there is a direct relationship with alcohol," he said.

"It's recognised as one of the commonest causes of liver cirrhosis - 93 per cent of liver cancer cases are associated with it, so alcohol is a clear risk factor.

"People have to be responsible for themselves. It's not just a huge financial cost to hospitals, care services and the Bradford economy - it's a personal cost too."

In 2012/13, more than 40,000 patients underwent screenings for alcohol problems across the Bradford district, with 11,410 receiving some form of hospital treatment for alcohol-related conditions or incidents, the highest rate in West Yorkshire.

According to figures from Bradford Council in February this year, it was approximated up to 92,000 people across the district could be drinking at "hazardous" levels.

Hilary McMullen, substance misuse commissioning manager at Bradford Council, said addressing the incidence of alcohol-related hospital admissions remained a high priority for Public Health and the CCGs across the district.

"We have invested in Alcohol Care Teams at both Bradford Royal Infirmary (BRI) and Airedale General Hospital, the latter coming online in the last two years.

"Patients who are admitted to hospital with an alcohol-related health problem are now being identified earlier on in their admission and referred to the Alcohol Care Team to receive the help and advice they require to address their alcohol use."

The new data, from the Health and Social Care Information Centre, shows that across England, hospitals admitted 10,500 cases of alcohol-related liver disease between April 2013 and March 2014, equating to more than 200 admissions every week.

The highest regional rate of emergency admissions, 45.3 per 100,000 patients, was recorded in Greater Manchester, with Bath, Gloucestershire, Swindon and Wiltshire sharing the lowest rate at 14.7 admissions per 100,000 registered patients.

Excessive drinking can lead to more than 40 different medical conditions, including cancer, stroke, hypertension, liver disease, and heart disease.