Search results for ‘Subject term:"older people"’ Sort:
Results 1 - 10 of 61
Suicide in the oldest old: an observational study and cluster analysis
- Authors:
- SINYOR Mark, et al
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 31(1), 2016, pp.33-40.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Objectives: The older population are at a high risk for suicide. This study sought to learn more about the characteristics of suicide in the oldest-old and to use a cluster analysis to determine if oldest-old suicide victims assort into clinically meaningful subgroups. Methods: Data were collected from a coroner's chart review of suicide victims in Toronto from 1998 to 2011. The study compared two age groups (65-79 year olds, n = 335, and 80+ year olds, n = 191) and then conducted a hierarchical agglomerative cluster analysis using Ward's method to identify distinct clusters in the 80+ group. Results: The younger and older age groups differed according to marital status, living circumstances and pattern of stressors. The cluster analysis identified three distinct clusters in the 80+ group. Cluster 1 was the largest (n = 124) and included people who were either married or widowed who had significantly more depression and somewhat more medical health stressors. In contrast, cluster 2 (n = 50) comprised people who were almost all single and living alone with significantly less identified depression and slightly fewer medical health stressors. All members of cluster 3 (n = 17) lived in a retirement residence or nursing home, and this group had the highest rates of depression, dementia, other mental illness and past suicide attempts. Conclusions: This is the first study to use the cluster analysis technique to identify meaningful subgroups among suicide victims in the oldest-old. The results reveal different patterns of suicide in the older population that may be relevant for clinical care. (Edited publisher abstract)
Trends in suicide rates of the elderly in Austria, 1970-2004: an analysis of changes in terms of age groups, suicide methods and gender
- Authors:
- KAPUSTA Netsor D., ETZERSDORFER Elmar, SONNECK Germot
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 22(5), May 2007, pp.438-444.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Suicides of the elderly (persons aged 65 and older) make up a large proportion of total suicides. Since suicide rates of the elderly are highest in western populations, addressing them as a risk group in prevention plans has been recommended. In order to assess possible approaches to prevention strategies, this study examines high-risk groups of the elderly. The authors examined official statistics on suicides that occurred in Austria between 1970-2004 (18,101 Suicides of the elderly). The authors analyzed time trends and differences in suicide methods as well as in age groups and both genders of the elderly. Three major high-risk groups were identified: elderly male suicides by firearms; elderly female suicides by poisoning, which occur more often with increasing age; and suicides of both genders by jumping from heights. Besides conducting treatment of psychiatric disorders of the elderly, restricting the means to commit suicide may help to prevent it among the elderly. Such specific prevention strategies should be implemented in national suicide prevention plans for the high-risk groups identified in this study.
Self-harm in older adults: systematic review
- Authors:
- TROYA M. Isabela, et al
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Psychiatry, 214(4), 2019, pp.186-200.
- Publisher:
- Cambridge University Press
Background: Self-harm is a major public health concern. Increasing ageing populations and high risk of suicide in later life highlight the importance of identification of the particular characteristics of self-harm in older adults. Aim: To systematically review characteristics of self-harm in older adults. Methods: A comprehensive search for primary studies on self-harm in older adults was conducted in e-databases (AgeLine, CINAHL, PsycINFO, MEDLINE, Web of Science) from their inception to February 2018. Using predefined criteria, articles were independently screened and assessed for methodological quality. Data were synthesised following a narrative approach. A patient advisory group advised on the design, conduct and interpretation of findings. Results: A total of 40 articles (n = 62 755 older adults) were included. Yearly self-harm rates were 19 to 65 per 100 000 people. Self-poisoning was the most commonly reported method. Comorbid physical problems were common. Increased risk repetition was reported among older adults with self-harm history and previous and current psychiatric treatment. Loss of control, increased loneliness and perceived burdensome ageing were reported self-harm motivations. Conclusions: Self-harm in older adults has distinct characteristics that should be explored to improve management and care. Although risk of further self-harm and suicide is high in all age cohorts, risk of suicide is higher in older adults. Given the frequent contact with health services, an opportunity exists for detection and prevention of self-harm and suicide in this population. These results are limited to research in hospital-based settings and community-based studies are needed to fully understand self-harm among older adults. (Edited publisher abstract)
Completed suicide among nursing home residents: a systematic review
- Authors:
- MURPHY Briony J., et al
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 30(8), 2015, pp.802-814.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Objective: This systematic review examines published research describing the frequency, nature, and contributing factors of completed suicides among nursing home residents. Methods: The review examined all original, peer-reviewed literature published in English between 1 January 1949 and 31 December 2013 describing completed suicides among nursing home residents. Information extracted for analysis included: study and population characteristics, method of suicide, potential risk factors, and interventions. Results: Eight studies were identified; the majority (n = 5) conducted in the United States of America. There were 113 suicides in nursing homes reported in the literature, 101 with detailed information available for aggregate analysis. The majority were male (n = 62, 61.4%), aged between 61 and 93 years. Suicide was most commonly by hanging (n = 27, 38.0%) or falling from a height (n = 27, 38.0%). Risk factors were considered in a proportion of studies. Depression was examined in 27 cases and present in 18 (67%). Duration of residence was examined in 25 cases, 13 (52%) of which had resided in the nursing home less than 12 months. Physical health was examined in 22 cases, 11 (50%) of whom were experiencing physical decline. Prior suicidal behaviour, cognitive function, and personal loss were also examined. Organizational risk factors and intervention strategies were rarely considered. Conclusions: There is a paucity of research describing completed suicide among nursing home residents. More large-scale research is required using standardised methods for reporting information to better understand and prevent completed suicides in this setting. (Edited publisher abstract)
Risk factors for suicide among older adults with cancer
- Authors:
- COLE Thomas B., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Aging and Mental Health, 18(7), 2014, pp.854-860.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
Objective: To determine whether the increased risk of suicide for individuals with cancer may be explained by functional limitations, lack of social support, or other factors.Method: In this population-based case-control study, interviews of primary informants for suicides in the state of North Carolina were compared to interviews with participants in the Piedmont Health Study of the Elderly to estimate adjusted odds ratios for suicide and self-reported, physician diagnosed cancer, heart attack, stroke, and hip fracture.Results: Adjusting for all other factors, there was a statistically significant association of suicide and cancer (odds ratio [OR] 2.62, 95% confidence interval [CI] CI 1.84–3.73), but not heart attack, hip fracture, or stroke. The risk of suicide was also elevated for men vs. women (OR 17.15, CI 10.88–27.02), whites vs. blacks (OR 9.70, CI 6.07–15.50), and individuals with stressful life events (OR 2.75, CI 1.97–3.86) or limitations of instrumental (OR 2.93, CI 2.03–4.22) but not physical activities of daily living. Suicide cases were not more likely to be short of breath or poor sleep quality. Suicide was statistically significantly less likely for study participants who were married with spouse living vs. other (OR 0.61, CI 0.43–0.88) or who had one or more indicators of social support (OR 0.27, CI 0.19–0.39).Conclusion: After adjustment for other risk factors, suicide was strongly associated with cancer but not with other disabling, potentially fatal conditions. (Publisher abstract)
Relationships among dispositional coping strategies, suicidal ideation, and protective factors against suicide in older adults
- Authors:
- MARTY Meghan A., SEGAL Daniel L., COOLIDGE Frederick L.
- Journal article citation:
- Aging and Mental Health, 14(8), November 2010, pp.1015-1023.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
Older adults have a disproportionally high rate of completed suicide as compared to the general population. This study sought to examine the relationships between coping strategies with protective factors against suicide and suicidal ideation in this population. The participants were 108 community-dwelling older adults with an age range of 60-95 years who completed a self-report questionnaire packet comprising the Coping Orientations to Problems Experienced scale, Reasons for Living inventory, and Geriatric Suicide Ideation Scale (GSIS). The results showed that problem- and emotion-focused coping were associated positively with reasons for living and negatively with suicide ideation. Dysfunctional coping was associated positively with suicide ideation, but the results did not support the hypothesised negative relationship with reasons for living. Thus, problem- and emotion-focused coping appear to be adaptive, whereas dysfunctional coping appears to be somewhat less related to resilience to suicidal ideation among community-dwelling older adults. The article concludes that some coping strategies may serve as protective factors against suicide and that coping strategies should be evaluated as part of a thorough assessment of suicidal risk among older adults. The results also provide some evidence of convergent validity for the recently developed GSIS.
Is there a relationship between elderly suicide rates and smoking? A cross-national study
- Author:
- SHAH Ajit
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 23(3), March 2008, pp.308-312.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
An independent relationship between smoking cigarettes and completed suicides has been reported in several cohort and case-control studies of younger subjects, but this relationship has rarely been examined in the elderly. The relationship between the prevalence of smoking in males and females and suicide rates in males and females in the age-bands 65-74 years and 75 + years was examined using national-level aggregate data from the World Health Organisation and the United Nations Development Programme websites. In addition to univariate analysis, multivariate analysis were conducted to ascertain an independent relationship between the prevalence of smoking and elderly suicide rates. The main findings were: (i) on univariate analysis, the prevalence of smoking in males was positively correlated with suicide rates in males aged 65-74 years and males aged 75 + years, but this relationship was absent in females and (ii) on multivariate analysis there was no independent relationship between the prevalence of smoking in males and suicide rates in males in both the elderly age-bands. There is a case for examination of the relationship between smoking and elderly suicides in individual-level cohort or case-control studies because of the potential methodological difficulties in cross-national studies using national- level aggregate data, paucity of cohort or case-control studies at an individual-level in the elderly, and the observation of an independent relationship between smoking and completed suicides in individual-level cohort and case-control studies in younger age groups.
Physical health and mental disorder in elderly suicide: a case-control study
- Authors:
- PRÉVILLE Michel, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Aging and Mental Health, 9(6), November 2005, pp.576-584.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
The psychological autopsy method was used to study 95 cases of suicide. Ninety-five comparison subjects matched for gender, age, region, and date of death were selected from the death register. This study showed that suicide cases did not differ from controls with regard to the number of chronic health problems and, compared to the suicide cases, the controls had less functional autonomy six months prior to death. If minor and sub-threshold depression cases were included, 74.7% of the suicide cases would have been considered as having a mental health disorder compared to 12.6% in the control group. When the effect of other co-variables were controlled for, multivariate analysis showed that suicide cases and controls did not differ according to marital status, education, income, and living arrangement. Furthermore, suicide cases were no more likely than controls to seldom meet with family members or friends or to have been isolated during the six-month period preceding their death. Our findings suggest that detection of psychiatric disorders, mainly depression, must be included in late life suicide prevention strategies.
Differences in suicide behaviour in the elderly: a study in two provinces of Northern Italy
- Authors:
- ZEPPEGNO P., et al
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 20(8), August 2005, pp.769-775.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
This study investigates the suicide phenomenon among older people (people aged 65 and over) in the Italian provinces of Novara and Verbania, in the time span between January 1990 and December 2000, in order to evaluate if the characteristics of the suicide behaviour correlate to the place of living with particular attention to the psychosocial factors. The information was collected from the Republic Procuration of the two provinces. Frequencies and contingency tables were evaluated to compare the data found in the two provinces. Standardised Mortality Ratios (SMRs) with their confidential intervals (95% confidence intervals) were calculated in comparison with the average suicide rates in North West Italy in the same period and in the same age group. One hundred and eighty-four suicides were committed from the elderly, with an average rate of 14.07 per 100,000 inhabitants in Novara and 25.56 in Verbania. The most common methods used to commit suicide were hanging and jumping from height. The factors chiefly related to suicide were mental disease, followed by organic illness. The analysis of SMRs point out that the incidence of suicide in the province of Verbania is higher than in North West Italy while in Novara it is lower. The evaluation of the suicide risk in the elderly in a diagnostic and preventive framework must take into consideration the psychosocial factors that vary with the place of living.
What should you expect at your age?
- Authors:
- MANTHORPE Jill, ILIFFE Steve
- Journal article citation:
- Openmind, 132, March 2005, pp.6-8.
- Publisher:
- MIND
Discusses complaints of gross neglect of mental health services for older people and an alleged national scandal of ignoring their heightened suicide risk are often heard, asking what is going on and why such services are still seen as the Cinderella. Asks how things might be improved by the voluntary sector, drawing on its experiences and critical perspectives.