MORE people were admitted to hospital after dog attacks in Merseyside last year than anywhere else in the UK.

The region saw 27 people out of every 100,000 having to endure a hospital stay last year.

Between March 2014 and February 2015, dog “bites and strikes” caused 322 admissions in Merseyside and 7,227 nationally – up from 6,740 last year.

Figures published by the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) today show that the number of people to take to hospital after dog attacks has soared by 76% in the past decade.

The most commonly affected age group was children aged under nine, with 1,159 admitted to hospital, according to the HSCIC's latest Hospital Episode Statistics release.

The increase in admission rates was mirrored by a 76% rise in the admission rate for bites and strikes by other animals over a ten-year period when total hospital admissions rose 25% from 12.6 million to 15.8 million, HSCIC said.

The most common injuries from dogs were open wounds of wrists, hands, head and forearm.

For other mammals the main injuries were also open wounds to the wrist and hand, however there were also more diagnoses of cellulitis - infection of the deeper layers of the skin and the underlying tissue - and more leg fractures.

Merseyside was followed by Durham, Darlington and Tees and Thames Valley where 24.9 per 100,000 and 23.9 per 100,000 people were admitted respectively.

The HSCIC noted: "Throughout this period the proportion of admissions which had any external cause recorded stayed relatively stable around 8%, so the increase in bite admission rates cannot simply be attributed to an increase in recording external causes.

"Admissions due to dog bites were generally higher in summer months and lower in winter, though there was a minor peak in December 2013. This pattern is not as pronounced for admissions due to other mammal bites.”

More boys than girls under nine were admitted but in all other age groups more women than men were affected, it noted.

At least 21 people, including 13 children, have died in England and Wales in the past 10 years from dog attacks.

In May last year the Dangerous Dogs Act was updated to ring in new longer maximum prison sentences for dog owners, including raising the maximum from two to 14 years for a fatal attack and five for one causing injury. There is also a three-year maximum sentence for allowing your dog to attack an assistance dog.

Trevor Cooper, the Dogs Trust's law specialist, said the statistics were "deeply concerning".

He said: "It is especially worrying to learn that the number of hospital admissions for dog related injuries is highest among the 0-9 age group.

"Dogs Trust remains frustrated that legislation focusing on issues around dangerous dogs and dog attacks remains ineffective at preventing these incidents happening in the first place. It is the responsibility of dog owners to ensure their dogs are properly trained and socialised and Dogs Trust advises that young children should never be left alone with a dog."