Health Conditions
ISD produces information and statistics about a wide range of health conditions in Scotland. (If you are looking for advice about your own health care you should consult your GP or other medical adviser.)
Hospitals
Information about people admitted to hospital in Scotland is available under the hospital care web pages. This topic includes information on numbers and rates of admission for different diagnoses in Scotland as a whole, as well as by each NHS Board of Residence. Both adult and childhood hospital admissions by diagnosis can be found under the diagnosis sub-topic.
In addition, we provide more detailed information on admissions for heart disease and for stroke.
Cancer
Scotland maintains a high quality cancer registry that is used to monitor changes in cancer risk and improve the effectiveness of cancer treatment. Information on new cases of cancer is drawn from a range of sources to ensure that it is as accurate and up to date as possible. Detailed information on the risk of cancer, death rates and survival after diagnosis for a wide range of cancers in Scotland is available in the cancer web pages.
General Practice
Other health conditions are mainly treated by GPs and other health professionals in primary care. Examples of such conditions include backache, high blood pressure and depression. Information on hospital admissions for these kinds of conditions may give a very incomplete picture. ISD publishes information on consultations for these conditions in Scottish general practices as part of a sample of GP practices across Scotland.
Another useful source of information about the number of cases of chronic disease diagnosed by general practitioners in Scotland is the annual Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) publication. The section on prevalence data includes information on the number of people in the population diagnosed with a range of conditions, such as coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, strokes, diabetes, dementia, depression and thyroid disease.
Waiting times
ISD also publishes a considerable amount of information on waiting times for treatment of various conditions including cancer, cardiac, cataract and hearing conditions, and on inpatient and outpatient waiting times.
Population statistics
The Scottish Public Health Observatory includes guides to information on selected health conditions including diabetes, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, epilepsy and multiple sclerosis. A list of all the conditions covered can be found in the menu section on "Health, Wellbeing and Disease" in the Scottish Health Observatory website.
Infectious diseases
ISD does not generally publish information on infectious diseases, as the lead agency in this area is Health Protection Scotland — another part of National Services Scotland. Their website includes information on a range of infectious diseases — including healthcare associated infections (HAIs) and environmental hazards.
If you are having difficulty finding information on a specific condition please try looking for it in our A-Z index. The customer support desk will find someone to assist you if your entry is not listed here.
