³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ

Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificates of 33 people in the week up to last Friday 25 March.

That is eight more than the previous week, according to the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (Nisra).

The agency has said that the increase may be related to delayed registrations following the bank holiday which was in week 11.

It brings the agency's total, based on deaths registered since the start of the pandemic, to 4,424.

The Department of Health's total for the same date, based on a positive test result being recorded, was 3,302 deaths.

Nisra's figures are higher because it records mentions of the virus on death certificates, where it may or may not have been confirmed by way of a test.

On the agency's measure, more than two-thirds of Covid-19-related deaths have occurred in hospital (3,082).

Care home residents account for a little more than a quarter (28.2%) of all Covid-19-related deaths.

People aged 75 and over account for almost three-quarters of all Covid-19-related registered deaths (73.7%) between 19 March 2020 and 25 March 2022.

Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon (12.5%) and Mid-Ulster (8.2%) local government districts have now recorded higher proportions of all Covid-19 related deaths, compared with their share of all deaths in Northern Ireland (10.4% and 6.7% respectively).

The provisional number of deaths from all causes registered in the week ending 25 March was 365.