ANOTHER four lives have been lost to the coronavirus in the past week as the death toll continues to slow.

The latest figures from the National Records of Scotland (NRS) showing death certificates listing Covid-19 outline an additional fatality in a care home between June 1 and 7.

There was also two further deaths of residents in hospital and one at home, bringing the total to 198. Renfrewshire remains the fifth most affected council area in Scotland.

Overall the national total rose to 4,000 deaths, with 89 in the past week, down 42 from the previous week.

It is the sixth weekly reduction in a row, according to the weekly statistics.

Less than half the registered deaths in the past week were in care homes. 

In separate provisional figures realised by the NRS, there were 11,023 births registered in Scotland between January 1 and 31 - the lowest number registered in the first quarter of a year since civil registration began in 1855.

There were 409 births in Renfrewshire and 529 deaths in the area between January 1 and March 31.

The number of marriages were down nationally by 14.3 per cent than the average for the first quarter in the last five years. There were 57 in Renfrewshire in the first three months of the year.

Pete Whitehouse, director of statistical services at NRS, said: “The number of births registered in the first quarter was the lowest since records began and continues the downward trend we have seen since 2008. 

"However, this is partly due to the closure of registration offices and suspension of birth and marriage registrations in March.

“The age-standardised mortality rate, which adjusts for Scotland’s ageing population, has increased by 0.4 per cent over the last year.”

The number of deaths registered was 4.1 per cent higher than in Q1 of 2019 but have fallen by 1.4 per cent compared to the Q1  average for the previous five years.

Also compared to the five-year average, the number of cancer deaths rose by 1.5 per cent and those from dementia and Alzheimer's disease rise by 1.9 per cent.

But deaths from respiratory diseases fell by 22.1 per cent and those from coronary heart disease decreased by 6.5 per cent. Deaths from cerebrovascular diseases were also down, by 7.2 per cent.

Read all the latest from Renfrewshire and beyond

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