This week we discuss the latest with Bird Flu, ask questions about what all the fuss about “Flu” is for, given how uncommon it is compared to the causes of deaths, and look into the work of the MRC Common Cold Unit, recommending its reinstatement.
See the ONS publications related to the causes of death here. Whilst in 2020 and 2021 reporting on deaths was all the rage, its now gone quiet and in 2024 published on
Deaths registered in England and Wales: 2023
Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease continued to be the top leading cause of death in England and Wales in 2023, with 66,876 deaths registered (11.6% of all deaths).
Ischaemic heart diseases (57,895 deaths; 10.0% of all deaths, and a 2.5% decrease in deaths from 2022).
Chronic lower respiratory diseases (32,106 deaths; 5.5% of all deaths, and a 7.7% increase from 2022).
Cerebrovascular diseases (29,474 deaths; 5.1% of all deaths, and a 0.7% increase from 2022).
Malignant neoplasm of trachea, bronchus and lung (27,923 deaths; 4.8% of all deaths, and a 2.3% decrease in deaths from 2022).
Influenza and pneumonia (24,240 deaths; 4.2% of all deaths).
Also see
Avoidable mortality in England and Wales: 2021 and 2022
Deaths from causes considered treatable or preventable given timely and effective healthcare or public health interventions in those aged under 75 years.
Alcohol-specific deaths in the UK: registered in 2022
Deaths caused by diseases known to be a direct consequence of alcohol, by age, sex, and region.
The contribution of the Common Cold Unit to the study of coronaviridae
In the first five parts of the Riddle series, we discussed how poor quality and superficial science have led to research waste and misled the globe as to the number of active covid cases, the incidence of hospital-acquired covid and the number of deaths directly attributable to SARS-CoV-2,
In Part 6 and the following chapters, we briefly examine what was known about human coronoviridae and other main respiratory viruses, their characteristics, and transmission. We introduce some readers to the work of pioneering scientists, forgotten in the recent tweeting and media frenzy.
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