§ Mr. Carter-Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many people died of kidney failure over the past five years; if he will estimate what proportion of these people could have been saved if suitable kidney and transplant facilities had been available; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Meacherasked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many people died of kidney failure in each district health authority for each year from 1979 to date.
§ Mr. Whitney[pursuant to his replies, on 26 November 1985, c. 544 and 28 November 1985, c. 656I very much regret that an error was made in the table showing the number of deaths from renal failure in England and Wales in my reply of 26 November. The explanation given in my reply of 28 November may also benefit from amplification.
The cause of deaths statistics are compiled by coding the underlying cause of death, in accordance with the international classification of diseases. The underlying 534W cause is derived from the information which is given by the doctor who completed the medical certificate of cause of death.
Deaths where the certificate mentioned renal failure without specifying an antecedent disease are coded to ICD 585 and 586. Deaths where the underlying cause is specified as renal disease are coded to ICD 580–584 or 587–9, but these cases may or may not have died from renal failure; other complications of the renal disease can result in different terminal events. Thus the codes ICD 585–6 on their own will understate the number of deaths where renal failure was a terminal event, but on the other hand the whole group ICD 580–589 will include some cases where there was no renal failure.
In addition, there will be an appreciable number of deaths where renal failure occurs as a terminal event of a disease, such as diabetes, where the renal failure is not classified as the underlying cause. Such cases cannot be identified in the statistics.
For district health authorities, the deaths from the whole group ICD 580–589 in 1980–84 are published in table 4 of "Mortality Statistics by Area", DH5 Series, copies of which are in the Library. Figures for the more limited group ICD 585–6 are included in the above but are not available separately for each District; these figures could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
The numbers of deaths from renal disease of all forms in England and Wales 1979–84 were:
Year Total numbers in International Classification of Diseases (ICD) 580–589 1979 4,380 1980 4,482 1981 4,766 1982 4,950 1983 4,742 *1984 4,391 * 1984 figures are not comparable with those of earlier years owing to a change in coding rules. It is impossible to estimate the proportion of people who might not have died if more treatment facilities had been available. Some of those who died would have been receiving treatment and the majority of cases recorded would not be regarded as treatable because of the presence of other dieases.