RESEARCH SPOTLIGHT
Trends in drug-induced deaths in Australia, 1997-2018
Preliminary estimates indicate that there were 1,740 drug-induced deaths among Australians in 2018 (1,549 drug-induced deaths among those aged 15-64 years).
This equates to nearly five drug-induced deaths per day, a similar figure to that observed in 2017 (1,795 deaths). It is also similar to the number recorded during the peak in deaths in 1999 (1,740 deaths).
Higher rates of drug-induced deaths were observed among males, but there has been a shift from younger (25-34) to older (35-54) age groups over the period of monitoring across both males and females.
