Guillain-Barre Syndrome deaths in the UK 2001 to 2022

FOI REF: FOI-2023-1512

You asked

Please could I request how many people are diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome in the UK each year, the mortality rate per year in the UK and any rehab/physiotherapy statistics.

We said

Thank you for your request. 

We are responsible for the production of mortality statistics for deaths registered in England and Wales. This is driven by information collected from death certificates at death registration. National Records Scotland (NRS) and Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) are responsible for statistics pertaining to Scotland and Northern Ireland. They can be contacted at foi@nrscotland.gov.uk and info@nisra.gov.uk respectively. 

Unfortunately, we do not hold data on diagnosis or rehabilitation. NHS England, NHS Wales or Public Health Wales may be better placed to answer queries on this topic. 

Our mortality data comes from the information collected at death registration. All the conditions mentioned on the death certificate are coded using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10). From all of these causes an underlying cause of death is selected using ICD-10 coding rules.  

The underlying cause of death is defined by WHO as:  

a) the disease or injury that initiated the train of events directly leading to death, or
b) the circumstances of the accident or violence that produced the fatal injury. 

The associated download named 'Guillain-Barre Syndrome deaths, UK 2001 to 2022' shows the number of deaths by year where the underlying cause was Guillain-Barr Syndrome. The following notes should be read in conjunction with the data.

Notes: 

1. Figures are for deaths registered, rather than deaths occurring in each calendar year. Due to the length of time it takes to complete a coroner's inquest, it can take months or even years for deaths from external causes and accidents to be registered. For more information see our Impact of registrations delays release. Impact of registration delays on mortality statistics in England and Wales publication. 

2. For deaths over 28 days, the Tenth Revision of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD-10) has been used to classify cause of death in the publication. The ICD is used to translate diagnoses of diseases and other health problems from words into alphanumeric code to permit easier storage, retrieval, and analysis. Deaths where the underlying cause was Guillain Barr Syndrome are coded to ICD-10 code G610. 

3. For deaths registered from 1 January 2022, cause of death is coded to the ICD-10 classification using MUSE 5.8 software. Deaths registered between 1 January 2020 and 31 December 2021 were coded to the using MUSE 5.5 and previous years were coded to IRIS 4.2.3. For more information click here. 

4. Figures for underlying cause exclude neonatal deaths as it is not possible to identify a single underlying cause for neonatal deaths or stillbirths. More information can be found in section 6 of our User Guide to Infant and Child Mortality Statistics.

For further information please contact Health.data@ons.gov.uk