Official Statistics

Respiratory disease profile: statistical commentary, June 2025

Published 3 June 2025

Applies to England

What바카라 사이트™s new

New data on emergency hospital admissions and the percentage of zero and one day emergency admissions has been added to the respiratory disease profile for the financial year ending 2024. Integrated care board (ICB) and NHS England region geographies have also been added.

The following indicators have been updated (where age has not been specified, this refers to all ages):

• emergency hospital admissions for respiratory disease
• emergency hospital admissions for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
• emergency hospital admissions for asthma in adults aged 19 years and over
• emergency hospital admissions for pneumonia
• emergency hospital admissions for bronchiolitis in children aged under 2 years
• the percentage of zero and one day emergency admissions to hospital for pneumonia
• the percentage of zero and one day emergency admissions to hospital for bronchiolitis in children aged under 2 years

Introduction

The respiratory disease profile gives local areas comparable indicators of risk factors, healthcare provision and outcomes for respiratory health to support commissioning and planning, and to identify unwarranted geographical variation.

Main findings

This update shows:

• the rate of emergency admissions for respiratory disease in England increased by 7% from the financial year ending 2023 to the financial year ending 2024
• in the same time period, the England rate of emergency admissions increased for COPD by 9%, asthma in adults by 17% and pneumonia by 16%
• the rate of emergency hospital admissions for bronchiolitis in children aged under 2 years in England was significantly higher in the financial year ending 2024 than in the pre-pandemic financial year ending 2020

Detailed findings

Emergency hospital admissions for respiratory disease, all ages

Respiratory disease covers a wide variety of conditions, both acute and chronic upper and lower respiratory tract conditions, asthma, COPD, influenza and certain types of pneumonia. In this analysis, lung cancer and cystic fibrosis are not included.

In the financial year ending 2024, there were 854,922 emergency admissions to hospital for respiratory disease in England, a rate of 1,428 (1,424 to 1,432) per 100,000 population, an increase of 7% from the previous year. The rate is significantly higher than the previous year but still below pre-pandemic levels.

There is geographical variation in respiratory disease admission rates across England. In the financial year ending in 2024, among NHS England regions:

• North East and Yorkshire NHS England region had the highest rate at 1,765 (1,753 to 1,777) per 100,000 population, a 7% increase on the previous year
• London NHS England region had the lowest rate at 1,121 (1,111 to 1,131) per 100,000 population, a 5% increase on the previous year

Figure 1: emergency hospital admissions for respiratory disease, directly standardised rate per 100,000 population, selected NHS England regions and England, from the financial year ending 2014 to the financial year ending 2024

Source: OHID, based on NHS England Hospital Episode Statistics Admitted Patient Care (HES APC) and patients registered at a GP practice.

Emergency hospital admissions for COPD, all ages

The rate of emergency admissions to hospital for COPD in England increased by 9% in the financial year ending 2024 from the previous year, to a rate of 208 (207 to 210) per 100,000 population, representing 121,129 admissions. The rate is significantly higher than the previous year.

There is geographical variation in COPD admission rates across England. In the financial year ending in 2024, among NHS England regions:

• North East and Yorkshire NHS England region had the highest rate at 280 (274 to 285) per 100,000 population, a 9% increase on the previous year
• South East NHS England region had the lowest rate at 152 (149 to 156) per 100,000 population, a 13% increase on the previous year

Figure 2: emergency hospital admissions for COPD, directly standardised rate per 100,000 population, selected NHS England regions and England, from the financial year ending 2014 to the financial year ending 2024

Source: OHID, based on NHS England HES APC and patients registered at a GP practice.

Emergency hospital admissions for asthma in adults aged 19 years and over

The rate of emergency admissions to hospital for asthma in adults in England increased by 17% in the financial year ending 2024 from the previous year, to 85 (83 to 86) per 100,000 population, representing 41,367 admissions. The rate is significantly higher than the previous year.

There is geographical variation in admission rates for asthma in adults across England. In the financial year ending in 2024, among NHS England regions:

• Midlands NHS England region had the highest rate at 108 (105 to 111) per 100,000 population, a 19% increase on the previous year
• East of England NHS England region had the lowest rate at 66 (64 to 69) per 100,000 population, an 18% increase on the previous year

Figure 3: emergency hospital admissions for asthma in adults aged 19 years and over, directly standardised rate per 100,000 population, selected NHS England regions and England, from the financial year ending 2014 to the financial year ending 2024

Source: OHID, based on NHS England HES APC and patients registered at a GP practice.

Emergency hospital admissions for pneumonia, all ages

The rate of emergency admissions to hospital for pneumonia in England increased by 16% in the financial year ending 2024 from the previous year, to a rate of 430 (428 to 432) per 100,000 population, representing 252,912 admissions. The rate is significantly higher than the previous year.

There is geographical variation in pneumonia admission rates across England. In the financial year ending in 2024, among NHS England regions:

• North West NHS England region had the highest rate at 539 (533 to 545) per 100,000 population, a 14% increase on the previous year
• East of England NHS England region had the lowest rate at 363 (358 to 368) per 100,000 population, an 18% increase on the previous year

Figure 4: emergency hospital admissions for pneumonia, directly standardised rate per 100,000 population, selected NHS England regions and England, from the financial year ending 2014 to the financial year ending 2024

Source: OHID, based on NHS England HES APC and patients registered at a GP practice.

Emergency hospital admissions for bronchiolitis in children aged under 2 years

Bronchiolitis is a viral respiratory infection, predominantly affecting children under the age of 1 year but occasionally children up to the age of 2 years. The majority of children with bronchiolitis do not require admission to hospital.

There were 50,818 emergency hospital admissions for bronchiolitis in children aged under 2 years in England in the financial year ending 2024, a rate of 4,206 (4,160 to 4,252) per 100,000 population. The rate is significantly lower than the previous year but higher than pre-pandemic levels.

There is geographical variation in admission rates for bronchiolitis in children aged under 2 years across England. In the financial year ending in 2024, among NHS England regions:

• North West NHS England region had the highest rate at 5,375 (5,230 to 5,525) per 100,000 population, a 14% decrease on the previous year
• London NHS England region had the lowest rate at 2,588 (2,507 to 2,674) per 100,000 population, a rate similar to the previous year

Figure 5: emergency hospital admissions for bronchiolitis in children aged under 2 years, crude rate per 100,000 population, selected NHS England regions and England, from the financial year ending 2014 to the financial year ending 2024

Source: OHID, based on NHS England HES APC and patients registered at a GP practice.

The percentage of zero and one day emergency admissions to hospital for pneumonia, all ages

Length of hospital stay for pneumonia is associated with the severity of illness on admission to hospital.

In the financial year ending 2024, there were 59,995 zero and one day emergency admissions to hospital for pneumonia in England, a proportion of 21.0% (20.8% to 21.1%). The proportion is significantly higher than in the previous year.

The percentage of zero and one day emergency admissions to hospital for bronchiolitis in children aged under 2 years

The duration of admission for bronchiolitis is affected by many factors including disease severity, local differences in the management of children with bronchiolitis in the emergency department, thresholds for hospital admission and discharge, and the availability of primary, community and social care support during the infant바카라 사이트™s recovery period. Length of stay should not be assessed in isolation; areas should also assess local intelligence alongside this indicator.

In the financial year ending 2024, there were 33,209 zero and one day emergency admissions to hospital for bronchiolitis in children aged under 2 years in England, a proportion of 64.3% (63.9% to 64.8%).

Background and further information

The respiratory disease profile provides an invaluable resource relating to one of the leading causes of death in England.

The profile contains where available data for sub-ICBs, ICBs, NHS England regions, upper tier local authorities, lower tier local authorities, statistical regions and England.

Further details about the profile methodology are available in the 바카라 사이트˜Definitions바카라 사이트™ data view of the .

For queries relating to this document, contact healthcare.variation@dhsc.gov.uk.