Suicide AND public health

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic contributed to the public health crisis for pediatric mental health. We characterized our local patient population presenting with suicidality or suicide attempts before and after the pandemic by examining: 1. frequencies of hospitalizations for suicidality to determine whether they differed by age, legal sex, race and ethnicity, or socioeconomic status; 2. average length of stay and discharge disposition; 3. 7-, 30-, and 365-day reutilization rates; and 4...

INTRODUCTION: This systematic review examines the impacts of suicide bereavement on men's psychosocial outcomes relating to suicidality, mental health, substance use, grief, and social functioning. Given the high global incidence of suicide and the substantial number of individuals affected by each suicide, understanding the specific experiences and outcomes for men is crucial, particularly in the context of observed gender differences in suicide rates, grief coping styles and mental health outcomes...

BACKGROUND: Problematic cannabis use is highly prevalent among people with mood disorders. This underscores the need to understand the effects of cannabis and cannabinoids in this population, especially considering legalization of recreational cannabis use. OBJECTIVES: We aimed to (1) systematically evaluate cross-sectional and longitudinal studies investigating the interplay between cannabis use, cannabis use disorder (CUD), and the occurrence of mood disorders and symptoms, with a focus on major depressive disorder (MDD) and bipolar disorder (BD) and; (2) examine the effects of cannabis on the prognosis and treatment outcomes of MDD and BD...

OBJECTIVE: Suicide prevention has been focused on primary prevention as a group rather than individuals. However, we aimed to identify sociodemographic and environmental characteristics of individuals with suicidal thoughts among rural residents in Japan. METHODS: In 2015, a cross-sectional home visit survey was conducted in a rural town in Akita Prefecture. A total of 1,844 residents aged ≥ 20 years (response rate, 65%) answered a self-administered questionnaire about suicidal thoughts in the past one month...

There are reports of poor working conditions for early and mid-career academics (EMCAs) in universities, however, empirical data using validated tools are scarce. We conducted an online, cross-sectional survey using validated tools to assess workplace satisfaction, exposure to workplace abuse, and mental health. Participants included employees of medical and health faculties of two of the largest Australian universities, surveyed between October 2020 and January 2021.Overall, 284 participants responded. Many reported job insecurity: half (50...

OBJECTIVE: This article aims to analyse the evolution of 40 Sustainable Development Goals' (SDGs) health-related indicators in Brazil and Ecuador from 1990 to 2019. STUDY DESIGN: Epidemiological study of long-term trends in 40 SDGs' health-related indicators for Brazil and Ecuador from 1990 to 2019, using estimates from the Global Burden of Disease Study. METHODS: Forty SDGs' health-related indicators and an index from 1990 to 2017 for Brazil and Ecuador, and their projections up to 2030 were extracted from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation's Global Burden of Disease website and analysed...

Problem gambling has been recognised as an important public health issue because of its harmful consequences at the personal, interpersonal, and societal levels. There is a proliferation of gambling activities in Ghana owing to increased access to the internet, soaring smartphone penetration, and an influx of sports betting companies. Yet, very little research has addressed the harm associated with problem gambling in Ghana. This study assessed if the effect of problem gambling severity on suicidal behaviours (ideation, planning, and attempts) through psychological distress is contingent on the level of perceived social support...

OBJECTIVE: Recreational cannabis legalization (RCL) is expanding rapidly. RCL's effects on mental health issues are of particular concern because cannabis use is more frequent among people receiving psychiatric care and is associated with several psychiatric disorders. The authors conducted a scoping review to examine the evidence and discern gaps in the literature concerning the effects of RCL on mental health and to assess the factors responsible for an observed heterogeneity in research results...

As there is lack of research on how drugs are presented in crime literature, we read nearly 25,000 pages of crime literature written between 1890 and 2023 to provide an overview on the pharmacological content in this genre. Correct presentation of pharmacological information decreased over time. Misconceptions about certain substances, especially narcotics and anesthetics appear in many of the analyzed examples. Also, in comparison with crime TV series, books are inferior in providing the reader with additional information and pharmacological plausibility...

BACKGROUND: Women's mental health during the perinatal period is a major public health problem in Pakistan. Many challenges and competing priorities prevent progress to address the large treatment gap. Aim To quantify the long-term impacts of untreated perinatal depression and anxiety in economic terms, thus highlighting its overall burden based on country-specific evidence. METHODS: Cost estimates were generated for a hypothetical cohort of women giving birth in 2017, and their children...

INTRODUCTION: Positive maternal mental health is associated with improved outcomes for infants, and yet the consideration of maternal mental health is often neglected in breastfeeding interventions. Breastfeeding interventions typically focus on breastfeeding promotion, and do not always include supports for the mother. This may result in isolated perceived pressure to breastfeed, the mental health impacts of which are not well understood. METHODS: This mixed-methods, longitudinal study examined whether perceived pressure to breastfeed was associated with depression, suicide ideation, anxiety, birth trauma and stress concurrently and 4 weeks later for postpartum mothers...

INTRODUCTION: Suicide is a leading cause of death, making suicide prevention a major public health priority. Increasing understanding of factors influencing suicidal behavior is paramount. Previous research has implicated psychological closeness, characterized by perceptions of how close/distant or attached/detached one feels to a particular object, as a cognitive factor that influences suicidal behavior. However, a better understanding of how psychological closeness to suicide methods is conceptualized by relevant populations is needed to improve its assessment and understand how it may confer risk for suicide...

BACKGROUND: Suicidal thoughts and behaviours (STB) represent a persistent and serious public health problem, and suicide is among the leading causes of death worldwide. We focus on predictors of transition rates and time courses through the STB spectrum among psychiatric emergency room (PER) patients. AIMS: We aimed to investigate (a) whether currently suicidal patients had prior referrals to the PER, (b) for which reason they were previously referred to the PER and (c) the timing of this referral...

INTRODUCTION: To examine the recent trends in child injury mortality in China. METHODS: Injury mortality data of 2010-2021 for children and adolescents aged 0-19 years were from the China Health Statistics Yearbook. Injury mortality disparities across urban vs. rural locations, gender, and age groups were scrutinized. Annual percent change (APC), average annual percent change (AAPC), and their 95% confidence intervals (95% CI ) were estiamted usimg Joinpoint regression models...

The attitudes of healthcare providers towards suicidal patients are known to influence their motivation to treat patients during a suicidal crisis. Patients who attempted suicide are more likely to have recently visited a primary care provider who is not necessarily sufficiently trained in managing a suicidal patient rather than a mental health provider who is trained to do so. For those reasons, documenting medical students and physicians' attitudes towards suicide can help in the development of effective intervention training to prepare them to manage these types of patients...

INTRODUCTION: Adolescent suicide is a prevalent issue globally, with various factors contributing to this phenomenon. This study aimed to investigate these factors and their interrelationships to better understand the causes of adolescent suicide and provide evidence for its prevention. METHODS: This study conducted among middle school students in Liaoning Province, China, from April to May 2016, A cross-sectional survey was administered to 1,028 students aged 10-19, using instruments such as the Behavior Questionnaire-Revised (SBQ-R), Children's Perception of Interparental Conflict Scale (CPIC), and revised version of Inventory of Parent Attachment (IPPA-R)...

BACKGROUND: Suicide represents a major public health concern, affecting a significant portion of individuals. However, there remains a gap in understanding the age and sex disparities in the occurrence of suicide. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the sex-related inequalities in suicide rates in Ghana from 2000 to 2019. METHODS: We utilized data from the WHO Health Equity Assessment Toolkit (HEAT) online software. We analysed sex differences in both crude and age-standardized suicide rates in Ghana spanning from 2000 to 2019...

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has been extensively discussed in the context of its effect on mental health. Although global suicide rates have remained stable during the pandemic, the specific effect on non-fatal suicide behaviours during and after the pandemic remains underexplored. This study aims to investigate patterns of non-fatal suicide behaviours before, during, and after the pandemic. METHODS: In this cohort study, we used data from all hospitals in Catalonia, Spain, collected through the Catalan Suicide Risk Code, which is a specifically designed suicide attempt surveillance protocol, involving a face-to-face, in-depth psychiatric evaluation, after a Catalan resident presents any suicide risk behaviour in any public health-care setting...

IMPORTANCE: Suicide is a substantial public health concern that involves various recognized contributing factors. Sensory impairments, specifically visual impairment, are deemed potential risk factors. Nonetheless, comprehensive information about associated risk levels and underlying determinants remains limited. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association between visual impairment and different aspects of suicide, including the assessment of risk levels and exploration of potential contributing factors...

BACKGROUND: In England and Wales coroners have a duty to write a report, called a Prevention of Future Deaths report or PFD, when they believe that actions should be taken to prevent future deaths. Coroners send PFDs to individuals and organisations who are required to respond within 56 days. Despite the increase in mental health concerns and growing use of medicines, deaths reported by coroners that have involved medicine-related suicides had not yet been explored. Therefore, this study aimed to systematically assess coroners' PFD reports involving suicides in which a medicine caused or contributed to the death to identify lessons for suicide prevention...