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August 2019

Alarming rise in asthma deaths


New data shows asthma deaths have increased by a third in the last decade as Asthma UK calls on the NHS to urgently tackle issues with basic asthma care




Deaths from asthma attacks are the highest they have been in the last decade and have increased by more than 33% over the last ten years, according to Asthma UK’s analysis of data from The Office for National Statistics (ONS). 

Asthma UK is now is calling on the NHS to take urgent action including addressing the lack of basic asthma care.

More than 1,400 people died from an asthma attack last year, an 8% increase compared to 2017.


The findings reveal an increase in men dying from asthma attacks, and there has been a 42% increase in deaths amongst people aged 35 – 44 in the last year.


There has been a 25% increase in asthma deaths in the South-East, and London has seen a 17% increase from 2017 to 2018.


Asthma UK says a lack of basic asthma care may have contributed to the rise as 60% of people with asthma in England and Wales – an estimated 2.9 million people – are not receiving basic care as recommended by national guidelines.


Asthma UK’s analysis also revealed that:

  • More than 12,700 people have died from asthma in England and Wales in the last decade11
  • There has been a 17% increase in the age-standardised asthma death rate over the last six years12.

The latest analysis follows a report last month which found that in the last 5 years, more than 500 people in Scotland had died from an asthma attack. In the last year 114 people in Scotland died from asthma, down from 126 in 2017, but Asthma UK said this was still ‘too many lives lost’.

Basic care, which every asthma patient is entitled to, should include a yearly review with a GP or asthma nurse, a written asthma action plan which explains how people with asthma can stay well and an inhaler technique check.

Asthma UK. Asthma death toll in England and Wales is highest this decade. Press release, 9 August 2019. https://www.asthma.org.uk/about/media/news/press-release-asthma-death-toll-in-england-and-wales-is-the-highest-this-decade/