A deathly silence: why has the number of people found decomposed in England and Wales been rising?

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

The number of deaths occurring in private homes in England and Wales had been rising for years, increasingly rapidly from 2020. Media stories and research linked decomposing bodies found in private homes with pandemic-related social isolation. We aim to explore whether these incidents are one-offs or part of a wider trend.

Design

Descriptive analysis of publicly available Office for National Statistics (ONS) data.

Setting

England and Wales.

Participants

All residents of England and Wales, 1979 to 2020.

Main outcome measures

Using data from the Office for National Statistics, we calculate European Age Standardised Rates for deaths coded as R98 ('unattended death') and R99 ('other ill-defined and unknown causes of mortality') in the 10th version

SUBMITTER: Hiam L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11284264 | biostudies-literature | 2024 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature