Fewer drunken patients are clogging up Oxfordshire's accident and emergency units.

The number of people arriving at the county's hospitals with injuries linked to alcohol has fallen during a three-year period, according to new figures.

And fewer people with alcohol-related health problems, such as heart disease, have also been admitted to hospital in recent years.

This week Thames Valley Police and NHS South Central Ambulance Service, which covers Oxfordshire, relaunched a campaign to cut alcohol-linked injuries.

In the past year, 3,628 people were taken to accident and emergency departments in Oxfordshire with injuries linked to alcohol. This compares with 3,787 in 2006-7 and 3,872 in 2005-6.

But the percentage of such cases has increased by more than four per cent, because overall hospital attendances dropped.

Val Messenger, deputy director of public health said: "Oxfordshire Primary Care Trust is pleased the number of people admitted to hospital due to drinking alcohol has reduced.

"This includes people with long-term effects, such as liver cirrhosis or heart disease, as well as those who were drunk or injured or assaulted while drunk.

"However, the percentage of A&E attendances related to alcohol has increased each year since 2005-6.

"The PCT continues to work with other organisations, such as the police, district councils and the acute trusts, to further reduce the number of alcohol-related attendances at A&E."

Figures released by the NHS this week show the number of people admitted to hospital with alcohol-related illness in Oxfordshire, such as heart disease, fell to 1,653 in 2006-7, from 1,664 the year before and 1,755 in 2004-5.

The campaign by the police and ambulance service was launched a year ago to highlight the dangers posed by drinking too much alcohol.

The project, which involved education for youngsters and a crackdown on licensed premises selling alcohol to under-18s, will run for a further 12 months.

Insp John Fox said there had been a 13 per cent reduction in serious assaults and two per cent fall in common assault connected to drunken crime.

This joint campaign has helped get the message across, Insp Fox added.

He said: "The number of serious assaults has dropped in the past year.

"Some of that is down to the good work by police officers out in town and city centres and trying to reduce the number of people being taken to hospital."

Jo Melling, director of Oxfordshire's drug and alcohol action team said more needed to be done to tackle harmful and hazardous drinkers.

She said: "Last year, Oxfordshire DAAT initiated two pilots, one to tackle alcohol-related disorder and one to provide community treatment. We need to build upon these initiatives but more funding needs to be provided by the Government if we're going to be successful in turning this tide."