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Recent trends in elderly suicide rates in England and Wales
- Authors:
- HOXEY Kate, SHAH Ajit
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 15(3), March 2000, pp.274-279.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
This study examines the following in England and Wales: recent trends in the elderly suicide rate and method-specific elderly suicide rate; the relationship between elderly population size and elderly suicide rate in recent years; and the sex difference in overall and method-specific elderly suicide rate. Discusses the findings and the need to ensure a further decline in suicide rates to meet the 'Our Healthier Nations' target.
Methods of elderly suicides in England and Wales by country of birth groupings
- Authors:
- DENNIS Michael, SHAH Ajit, LINDESAY James
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 24(11), November 2009, pp.1311-1313.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
This brief article presents statistics on methods of suicide used by older males and females, using data on suicides and open verdicts for England and Wales obtained from the Office for National Statistics for the period 2001 to 2005. As data concerning ethnicity are not recorded on death certificates, country of birth was used as a proxy. Although this approach only provides mortality data of first generation migrants rather than for entire black and minority ethnic (BME) groups, there is a close match between ethnicity and country of birth for older people. Individual countries of birth were grouped into broader regional country of birth categories, and the number of suicides for each method was calculated by gender for each country of birth grouping. A combined BME group was then calculated for each gender by combining those born outside England and Wales. The results show that hanging, drug overdose and drowning were the commonest methods of suicide in older people in England and Wales in most country of birth groups; in the female Indian subcontinent group the commonest methods were drug overdose, drowning, and burning; methods of suicide in older people were generally similar in the BME population compared to people born in England and Wales.
Attempted and completed suicide in older subjects: results from the WHO/EURO multicentre study of suicidal behaviour
- Authors:
- DE LEO Diego, et al
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 16(3), March 2001, pp.300-310.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Presents an analysis of findings for the 65 years and over age group from the WHO/EURO Multicentre Study of Suicidal Behaviour (1989-93).
Trends in suicide by drowning in the elderly in England and Wales 1979-2001
- Author:
- SALIB Emad
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 20(2), February 2005, pp.175-181.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Suicide by drowning increases with age but its rates vary between countries and among communities. Drowning suicide rates in some of the available studies may have been over reported or under reported because of misclassification. This study presents data on the time trends, age/sex mortality rates from death by drowning in the elderly in England and Wales between 1979 and 2001. All coroners' verdicts in death by drowning; suicide, deaths undetermined whether accidentally or purposely inflicted were examined. Counts of suicide due to drowning and submersion [ICD 9 codes; E954] and undetermined injury deaths [E984] (WHO, 1977), reported in England and Wales between 1979 and 2001 were obtained from National Statistics (ONS). There has been a gradual reduction in suicide by drowning in men and women by more than a third the observed count in 1979 (p < 0.01). However, this decline was less evident in the elderly particularly those over the age of 75. Elderly drownings appear to attract more verdicts of suicide compared to younger age groups (Odds Ratio 4.3 95% CI 2.3-8.3). Women, particularly elderly, are more likely to have a suicide verdict returned in drowning compared to men (Odds Ratio 1.5 95% CI 1.1-1.6). The high rate of open verdicts in elderly drowning over the study period and compared to any other method of fatal self harm in England and Wales confirms the difficulties in reaching a firm conclusion in drowning death. Therefore combining suicide and all undetermined deaths in drowning as a matter of course, in nationally collected statistics, may result in grossly exaggerated rates and misleading trends in suicidal drowning. Suicide by drowning is probably not amenable to prevention and although the elderly are often thought to benefit more from suicide prevention than younger adults, the study findings seem to suggest that this is not likely to be the case in drowning.
A study of suicides of older people in Sydney
- Authors:
- SNOWDON John, BAUME Pierre
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 17(3), March 2002, pp.261-269.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Reports based on studies of coroner's files show that suicides in old age are commonly related to depression, but that in a majority of cases disability or ill-health is also a major factor. The aim of this study was to try to understand more clearly the precipitant causes of suicide in an older population using an Australian metropolitan coroner's office provided data concerning suicides in 1994-1998 of persons aged over 65 years. Of 210 elderly people who killed themselves, 160 (76%) were clearly depressed, including a majority of the 24% deemed to have understandable reasons for suicide. Physical ill-health or disability was the major factor leading to suicide in 34% and appeared to contribute to suicidal ideation in another 24% of those who died; they had usually not been seen by psychiatrists. Because depression is often treatable, even when associated with depressing circumstances, there is potential for further reduction of old age suicide rates by recognising and appropriately responding to symptoms of depression and distress.
Nursing home suicides: a psychological autopsy study
- Authors:
- SOUMINEN Kirsi, et al
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 18(12), December 2003, pp.1095-1101.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Older adults comprise a fifth of all suicides. Elders are the fastest growing part of the population, thus the number of persons needing nursing home care will increase dramatically in the near future. Little information has been available about suicides in nursing homes. The present study described all suicides among older adults in nursing homes in Finland during a 12-month period emphasizing the factors that have been found to be associated with suicide in the general elderly population. Drawing on data from a psychological autopsy study of all suicides (n=1397) in Finland during one year, all suicides committed by patients in nursing homes were identified. Retrospective DSM-IV consensus diagnoses were assigned. Twelve elderly (aged 60 years or more) nursing home residents who died by suicide, 0.9% of all suicides, were identified. The primary finding of the present study was that nursing home residents who died by suicide had suffered from highly comorbid somatopsychiatric disorders. One or more diagnoses on Axis I were made for all who died by suicide in nursing home. Depressive syndrome was diagnosed in three-quarters of subjects. Only a third of these were identified to have suffered from depressive symptoms before their death. Early recognition and adequate treatment of both somatic diseases and mental disorders, particularly depression, as well as early recognition of suicide risk among nursing home residents, are needed in order to prevent suicide.
Gender in elderly suicide: analysis of coroners inquests of 200 cases of elderly suicide in Cheshire 1989-2001
- Authors:
- SALIB Emad, GREEN Laura
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 18(12), December 2003, pp.1082-1087.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
The aim of this study is to review gender differences in elderly suicide in relation to specific social aspects of the suicidal process and health care contact before death. Such information may have practical value in identifying and targeting vulnerable elderly in whom suicide may be potentially preventable. Data were extracted from the records of coroner's inquests into all reported suicide of persons aged 60 and over, in Cheshire over a period of 13 years 1989-2001. The Coroner's office covers the whole county of Cheshire (population 1 000 000). Men were less likely to have been known to psychiatric services (Odds Ratio [OR] 0.4 95% 0.2-0.6) and with less frequently reported history of previous attempted suicide compared to women (OR 0.5 95% Confidence Intervals [CI] 0.2-1). All deceased from ethnic minorities were men, none of whom had been known to psychiatric services. There was no significant difference between women and men in relation to, physical or psychiatric morbidity, GP contact prior to suicide, intimation of intent or living alone. Of suicide victims not known to services a surprisingly high proportion of 38% and 16% were found to have psychiatric morbidity in men and women respectively.
Recent trends in elderly suicide rates in a multi-ethnic Asian city
- Authors:
- KUA Eee-Heok, KO Soo-Meng, NG Tze-Pin
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 18(6), June 2003, pp.533-536.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
There are a few reports on the trends of elderly suicide rates in western countries but none from Asian countries. This article describe the trends of elderly suicide rates of Chinese, Malays and Indians in Singapore from 1991 to 2000. Overall, the suicide rates for the elderly showed a decline from 40.1 per 100,000 in 1990 to 17.8 per 100,000 in 2000, with the most pronounced decline occurring from 1995 to 2000. The suicide rate for elderly Chinese was at a peak of 52 per 100,000 in 1995 and declined to 20 per 100,000 in 2000. The rates for elderly Malays were consistently low at 2.2 per 100,000 for the 10 years; for elderly Indians the rates were between the other two ethnic groups. In the 10-year period, the elderly suicide rates in Singapore declined markedly, especially for elderly Chinese.
One-year prevalence of death thoughts, suicide ideation and behaviours in an elderly population
- Authors:
- SCOCCO P., LEO D. De
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 17(9), September 2002, pp.844-846.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Suicidality is constituted by all those phenomena that are apparently positioned along a continuum, with the two extremes represented by death wishes and completed suicide. The aim of article is to show the one-year prevalence of the phenomena constituting this possible continuum in the elderly population (aged 65 years and over) of a northern Italian city and to evaluate the relationship between some of these phenomena with psychological suffering.
Sex differences in elderly suicide rates: some predictive factors
- Authors:
- COREN S., HEWITT P.L.
- Journal article citation:
- Aging and Mental Health, 3(2), May 1999, pp.112-118.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
In the USA the rate of suicide among individuals aged 65 and older is higher than that for any other age group. There is a marked sex difference, with men accounting for 86 per cent of elderly suicides. Using a sample consisting of every reported suicide death of older individuals between 1986 and 1990, it was found that a different pattern of variables was predictive of suicide rates for men and women. For elderly men, factors associated with financial and social status were the best predictors of suicide. For elderly women, the predictors were indexes of social and environmental stability and stress. These findings may be explained by psychological theories which speak of sex differences in the personality domains known as agency and communion, and similar considerations may help to explain why the suicide rate for men tends to increase in old age, while that for women remains relatively constant.