# First Covid lockdowns, then alcohol to your door: rise in young Victorians with liver diseases prompts fears

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/first-covid-lockdowns-then-alcohol-to-your-door-rise-in-young-victorians-with-liver-diseases-prompts-fears/
- Published: 2026-11-11T14:00:51+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-11T14:20:19+00:00
- Original publisher: The Guardian (publisher lean: Left)
- Original article: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/nov/12/first-covid-lockdowns-then-alcohol-to-your-door-rise-in-young-victorians-with-liver-diseases-prompts-fears
- Topics: Health, Medicine, Software, Technology, World

## Key points

- Alcohol-related hepatitis admissions remain high in Victoria.
- Fourteen per cent of patients were under 35.
- Researchers say a small group of young people drink heavily.

## Summary

Hospital admissions for alcohol-associated hepatitis in Victoria rose sharply during the Covid lockdowns and remain well above pre-pandemic levels. Researchers warn that severe, potentially irreversible liver disease is affecting younger people, even as young people’s overall alcohol consumption has declined.

A Burnet Institute report examined 4,111 hospital admissions from January 2017 to June 2024, alongside clinical data dating back to 2010. Men accounted for 62.5% of admissions, while 14% of patients were under 35; researchers also reported a sharp rise among women. They said lockdown stress and increased access to home alcohol delivery may have contributed, but the study could not establish specific causes.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.