Rising numbers of young people are being hospitalised with severe, irreversible liver disease, as alcohol-related hospital admissions remain above pre-pandemic levels after peaking during Covid lockdowns.

A new Burnet Institute report, commissioned by the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education (Fare), analysed nearly two decades of Victorian health data to examine the prevalence of alcohol-associated harm.

The study analysed 4,111 hospital admissions between 1 January 2017 to 30 June 2024, along with clinical data from 1 January 2010 to 30 June 2024.

When Covid lockdowns began in March 2020, treatment of alcohol-related hepatitis – a subset of liver disease – rose sharply, the data shows.…