Suicide and antidepressants ....Articles by LCD ..... Suicide Confessions Forum
Date: 9/28/2008 12:17:20 PM ( 16 y ago)
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URL: https://www.curezone.org/forums/fm.asp?i=1266327
Suicide and antidepressants ....
Drug labels must carry suicide alert (Alle pakningsvedlegg må inkludere advarsel mot selvmord)
independent.ie 24.2.2008
(...) All brands of antidepressant for sale in Ireland will have to carry a warning that the side-effects may include suicide.
After a review carried out by the US Food and Drugs Agency, 33 products which are also widely prescribed in Ireland were deemed to carry a significant risk and merit the warning. (...)
Drop in SSRI Prescribing in the United Kingdom Did Not Lead to Youth Suicide Spike (Reduksjon i SSRI-forskrivning førte ikke til økning av selvmord hos ungdommer)
medscape.com 21.2.2008
February 21, 2008 — Reduced prescribing of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressants for young people in the United Kingdom following regulatory action in 2003 did not lead to an increase in suicidal behavior, according to an ecological time series study.
The study, led by Benedict W. Wheeler, PhD, from the University of Bristol, in the United Kingdom, was published online February 14 in BMJ.
"The findings are important, in that reduced access to antidepressants in young people in the United Kingdom following regulatory intervention appears not to have had an adverse impact on suicide deaths or hospital admissions for deliberate self-harm," Dr. Wheeler told Medscape Psychiatry. (...)
Midlife Suicide Rises, Puzzling Researchers (Midtlivs-selvmord øker, forvirrer forskerne)
nytimes.com 19.2.2008
A new five-year analysis of the nation’s death rates recently released by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that the suicide rate among 45-to-54-year-olds increased nearly 20 percent from 1999 to 2004, the latest year studied, far outpacing changes in nearly every other age group. (All figures are adjusted for population.)
For women 45 to 54, the rate leapt 31 percent. “That is certainly a break from trends of the past,” said Ann Haas, the research director of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
By contrast, the suicide rate for 15-to-19-year-olds increased less than 2 percent during that five-year period — and decreased among people 65 and older. (...)
At the moment, the prime suspect is the skyrocketing use — and abuse — of prescriiption drugs. During the same five-year period included in the study, there was a staggering increase in the total number of drug overdoses, both intentional and accidental, like the one that recently killed the 28-year-old actor Heath Ledger. Illicit drugs also increase risky behaviors, C.D.C. officials point out, noting that users’ rates of suicide can be 15 to 25 times as great as the general population. (...)
Suicide rate drops in young men
bbc.co.uk 15.2.2008
The suicide rate among young men in England and Wales is at the lowest level for 30 years, say researchers. (...)
Prescriiptions of a type of antidepressants called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) in the under-18s have fallen by almost half in the past few years, after drug regulators issued stronger warnings on their use.
Professor Gunnell said concerns about the dangers of reducing antidepressant use in children, who might therefore be at an increased risk of committing suicide, had been raised by US research.
"There's been a greater fall in antidepressant prescribing in the UK but we have seen none of the potentially alarming upturn in suicides." (...)
Antidepressants and suicide
Editorials
BMJ, doi:10.1136/bmj.39482.666366.80 (published 14 February 2008)
Treatment is probably too sporadic to affect overall suicide rates (...)
More recent observational studies, however, raise doubts about an association between suicide rates and changes in antidepressant prescribing. The most recent US data suggest that adolescent suicide deaths began to decrease again between 2004 and 2005.7 The two accompanying observational studies show a lack of connection between antidepressant prescribing rates and suicide rates in adolescents and young adults in the United Kingdom.1 2 Suicide rates declined when antidepressant use steadily increased but continued to decline when the use of antidepressants fell sharply in 2003 and 2004. (...)
Suicide rates in young men in England and Wales in the 21st century: time trend study
BMJ, doi:10.1136/bmj.39475.603935.25 (published 14 February 2008)
(...) Possible recent reductions in alcohol use among young men and increases in prescribing of antidepressants do not seem to be temporally related to the decline in suicide. (...)
The population impact on incidence of suicide and non-fatal self harm of regulatory action against the use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors in under 18s in the United Kingdom: ecological study
BMJ, doi:10.1136/bmj.39462.375613.BE (published 14 February 2008)
(...) Conclusions The noticeable reduction in prescribing of antidepressants since regulatory action in 2003 to restrict the use of SSRIs in under 18s does not seem to have been associated with changes in suicidal behaviour in young people. Specifically, these data for England do not indicate that reductions in antidepressant use have led to an increase in suicidal behaviour. (...)
Varningstext på antidepressiva
lakartidningen.se 16.5.2007
FDA, USA:s läkemedelsverk, har nyligen utfärdat krav på varningstexter, »black box warning«, på antidepressiva preparat.
De nya varningstexterna på förpackningen skall ange att tonåringar under 18 år och unga vuxna mellan 18 och 24 löper en ökad risk för suicidala tankar och känslor i samband med antidepressiv medicinering. (...)
Vil advare mot selvmord
dagbladet.no 2.5.2007
ØKT SELVMORDSFARE: Antidepressive legemidler eller såkalte lykkepiller kan øke risiko for selvdestruktiv oppførsel for unge. Nå vil amerikanske legemiddelverket ha obligatorisk advarsel.
Det amerikanske legemiddelverket vil at unge som får lykkepiller skal advares om økt risiko for selvmord. (...)
FDA Seeks Antidepressant Suicide Warning
forbes.com 2.5.2007
Young adults beginning treatment with any antidepressant should be warned about an increased risk of suicidal thoughts and behavior associated with the drugs, health officials said Wednesday. (...)
Kan selvmord forebygges? (PDF)
Av professor Einar Kringlen
aftenposten.no 2.3.2007
Medikamentenes rolle. Psykiater Jørgen Bramness og psykolog Fredrik Walby hadde i Aftenposten 12. februar en artikkel om dette viktige temaet. Budskapet fra forfatterne er klart. Man fikk en nedgang i selvmord her i landet fra slutten av 1980-tallet, en nedgang som tilskrives de nyere antidepressive medikamentene.
De skriver også: «I årene etter medikamentene ble introdusert sank antall selvmord med opptil 150 pr. år.»Bare på et par år skulle altså nedgangen være på 300. Trykkfeil eller har det gått litt fort for forfatterne? Etter 1970-tallet begynte selvmordsratene å stige her i landet, og særlig på slutten av 80-tallet fikk man en påtagelig økning med en topp i 1988 med over 700 registrerte selvmord. Siden flatet tallene seg ut, og fra 1992 kom
det en betydelig nedgang, særlig for menn, med ca. 500 for 2003. Vi må tilbake til 1975 for å finne så lave tall.
Det er imidlertid tvilsomt om den store bruken av de «nyere» antidepressive medikamenter er årsaken til nedgangen, av følgende grunner:
Ved studium av selvmordsrater i forskjellige land fant forskeren Burgess og medarbeidere at de land som hadde satt i verk forebyggende tiltak, faktisk hadde den største økningen av selvmord. I motsetning til hva mange ville vente, fant man altså at forebyggende tiltak, blant annet bruk av antidepressive medikamenter, var knyttet til en økning av selvmord, særlig blant menn.
Drapstallene for Norge økte også fra 1970-tallet og nådde en topp i 1989 med 62 registrerte drap. Siden fant det sted en nedgang til 37 i 1999–med en lett oppgang i 2002. Selvmord og drap er gjerne knyttet til brede sosiale samfunnsendringer. Det mest interessante i denne sammenheng er faktisk hvorfor både selvmords- og drapstallene økte så sterkt på slutten av 1980-tallet. Plassen tillater ikke detaljer, men la meg minne om at i Norge representerte 80-tallet en nasjonal orgie i vekst og forbruk som endte med en bankkatastrofe på slutten av tiåret. (...)
Selvmord kan forebygges
lmi.no 13.2.2007 (Legemiddelindustriforeningen (LMI))
Etter at nye medikamenter mot depresjon kom, sank antall selvmord med opptil 150 pr. år skriver psykiater Jørgen G. Bramness og psykolog Fredrik A. Walby i Aftenposten. (...)
Behandling av depresjoner forebygger selvmord
fhi.no 9.2.2007 (Nasjonalt folkehelseinstitutt (FHI))
En ny studie fra Folkehelseinstituttet viser at selvmordfrekvensen i Norge gikk ned samtidig som nyere antidepressiver kom på markedet. Dette bekrefter funn som er gjort flere ganger før i forskjellige land. To ting er nye i denne undersøkelsen: Effekten gjelder ikke bare SSRI-preparatene, men alle nyere antidepressiver og effekten var synlig de første årene etter at midlene ble introdusert. (...)
Forskerne Jørgen G. Bramness ved Folkehelseinstituttet og Fredrik A. Walby ved Senter for selvmordsforskning og forebygging ved Universitetet i Oslo, har nylig publisert en undersøkelse i Journal of Affective Disorder. (...)
Resultatene for hele landet under ett, viste en sammenheng mellom salgsutviklingen av antidepressiver og utviklingen i selvmordshyppighet. På begynnelsen av 1990-tallet var økning i salg av antidepressiver assosiert med en nedgang i antall selvmord på ca. 150 pr. år. (...)
Ut fra dette resultatet er det likevel mulig å si at introduksjonen av de nye antidepressivene hadde en folkehelsegevinst.
Lenke til kronikk i Aftenposten 12.02.2007 (...)
Antidepressiver kan forebygge selvmord
helserevyen.no 12.2.2007
Selvmordfrekvensen i Norge gikk ned samtidig som nyere antidepressiver kom på markedet. Rundt 150 liv kan være reddet per år.
Det viser forskningsrapporten The sales of antidepressants and suicide rates in Norway and its counties 1980–2004, som ble publisert i Journal of Affective Disorder i midten av januar. (...)
Selvmord kan forebygges
aftenposten.no 12.2.2007
I årene etter at nye medikamenter mot depresjon kom på markedet, sank antall selvmord med opptil 150 pr. år. (...)
På 1990-tallet fikk vi en rekke nye antidepressiver i Norge. Før dette var depresjon en klart underbehandlet sykdom, men med SSRI-preparatene og andre nye antidepressiver opplevde norske leger å få et redskap i kampen mot lidelsen. Sammen med medikamentene kom økt forståelse for viktigheten av å oppdage og behandle depresjoner. Dette ble formidlet av fagfolk og legemiddelindustri. Både leger og pasienter fikk større behandlingsoptimisme i en situasjon som oftest var kjennetegnet av det motsatte. (...)
Øker SSRI risikoen for suicidal adferd?
dagensmedisin.no 8.2.2007
- Som hovedregel vil SSRI og andre antidepressiva redusere suicidaltanker, men hos noen kan de tvert imot fremprovosere slike tanker, kanskje særlig hos barn og unge, skriver Odd Lingjærde.
(...) Noen konklusjoner
Det er problematisk å trekke bastante konklusjoner ut fra den omfattende litteraturen om SSRI og andre antidepressivas mulige fremprovosering av suicidal adferd. (...)
As Antidepressant Sales Sink Pharma Attacks FDA's Black Boxes
opednews.com 14.9.2008
As Antidepressant Sales Sink Pharma Attacks FDA's Black Boxes
In April, Dr. Catherine DeAngelis, editor of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), wrote that pharma's influence on medicine "is so blatant now you'd have to be deaf, blind and dumb not to see it," adding, "We should all get together and say, 'Enough!'"
But an article in the September 3 JAMA finds her not taking her own medicine. (...)
Meanwhile pharma's aggressive Center for Medicine in the Public Interest (CMPI) stands with the black box theory and awaits the next move from the "anti-SSRI mafia."
"You can bet it'll be vitriolic pharma-bashing with a heaping measure of junk science," warns CMPI president Peter Pitts. (...)
Teen Suicide Rates Falling
telegraph.co.uk 5.9.2008
Medical Researchers say the number of teen suicides across the nation are falling.
One reason for the decline may be recent drug scares deterring teens from using antidepressants. Black box warnings from the FDA have lead to the decline of teens using antidepressants following reports of the drugs increasing suicidal tendencies.
While teen suicide rates are on the decline, experts say they're still disturbingly high. Mesa County's teen suicide rates have also steadlidly decreased, but experts say it's still to early to know why. Linwood says in some instances antidepressants can be more helpful than harmful. Supporters of the drugs say their benefits, including treating depression that can lead to suicide, outweigh their risks. (...)
Dutch academics criticise suicide claims made in American psychiatry journal
BMJ 2008;336:112 (19 January)
Claims in an influential scientific journal of a link between a leap in suicides among young people in the Netherlands and a fall in prescriiptions for selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) has been condemned in the Netherlands as "astonishing" and "misleading." (...)
Dr Bijl says the paper’s conclusions were "astonishing" and "cannot be made from the data available." He believes the abstract in the American Journal of Psychiatry should have mentioned that the data lay outside the limit of statistical significance.
"The numbers for the Netherlands are so small that you have to be very, very careful before you make a statement," he said. In an issue as important as childhood suicide he feels the authors were "reckless."
Dr Bijl has raised his concerns with the American Journal of Psychiatry, which is investigating the matter. (...)
The Black Box Warning: Decreased Prescriiptions and Increased Youth Suicide?
Am J Psychiatry 164:1907 (December 2007)
(...) In the editorial accompanying the article, James F. Leckman, M.D., and Robert A. King, M.D., noted that the authors cited several studies that agreed with their position, but no studies that reported neutral or opposite findings (3). There is no mention of the fact that the suicide rate was already declining before SSRIs were introduced. The 2004 suicide figures were compared simplistically with the previous year, rather than examining the change in trends over several years. The y axes were contracted to make trends appear more impressive and no data tables were provided, and thus it is difficult for readers to make their own calculations. (...)
SSRI Prescriiptions and the Rate of Suicide
Am J Psychiatry 164:1907-a-1908 (December 2007)
(...) We feel that it is risky to draw conclusions from limited ecologic analyses of isolated year-to-year fluctuations in antidepressant prescriiptions and suicides. One promising epidemiological approach involves examining the associations between trends in psychotropic medication use and suicide over time across a large number of small geographic regions. Until the results of more detailed analyses are known, prudence dictates deferring judgment concerning the public health effects of the FDA warnings. (...)
Färre barn behandlas med SSRI, fler begår självmord
Isacsson G, Bejerot S, Jarbin H.
Läkartidningen 2007;104(43):3180-81
Oroväckande trend bland barn och unga i USA (...)
Självmord bland barn och unga (10–24 år) ökade dramatiskt (8 procent) under
2004, enligt officiell amerikansk statistik som nyligen offentliggjorts. Denna
utveckling är särskilt anmärkningsvärd mot bakgrund av att antalet självmord i
åldersgruppen hade minskat med 28 procent under perioden 1990–2003. Utvecklingen i USA, med betydligt större population, kan avslöja trender som i
Sverige skulle ta åratal att upptäcka. (...)
För snabb reaktion
Enligt vår uppfattning var dock säkerhetsåtgärderna baserade för lite på en allsidig vetenskaplig värdering och för mycket på den uppståndelse som åstadkoms av emotionellt laddade fallrapporter, ideologiskt präglade »konsumentorganisationer«, uttalat antipsykiatriska organisationer,
sekter, motståndare till vinstdriven läkemedelsindustri etc. Sannolikt
fanns också ytterligare krafter inblandade, eftersom rättsprocesser mot läkemedelsindustrin kunde tänkas inbringa inkomster till både jurister och enskilda. (...)
I en kritisk debattartikel i Läkartidningen 2005 skrev vi att hypotetiska risker för biverkningar av antidepressiva måste vägas mot väl etablerade risker
förknippade med utebliven behandling. Beaktat att depression är främsta orsaken till självmord, även bland barn och unga, medför sannolikt utebliven behandling den större risken för självmord [3]. Den aktuella utvecklingen tyder på att vi sannolikt hade rätt. (...)
Suicide rates as a public relations tool (Selvmordsrater som pr-verktøy)
By Alison Bass
boston.com 24.9.2007
EARLIER THIS MONTH, major newspapers reported the alarming news that suicides among young people were on the rise because of a precipitous drop in the use of antidepressants. This news was based on a study in the September issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry, which concluded that physicians had been scared away from prescribing antidepressants because of the Food and Drug Administration's decision in October 2004 to put black box warnings on the pediatric use of these drugs. The FDA mandated the warnings after finding an increased risk in suicidal thoughts and behaviors among adolescents taking antidepressants such as Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, and Celexa.
In the wake of the study, several psychiatrists called for the black box warnings to be retracted. "It's time for the agency's warnings to be modified," opined Dr. David Schaffer, chief of child and adolescent psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center in New York City.
News sources have since exposed a big hole in the journal's argument. Several experts quoted in The New York Times and The Boston Globe pointed out that while there was indeed an upturn in suicide rates among youths (an increase of 14 percent, or a total of 252 more deaths among youths under 19 between 2003 and 2004), the number of prescriiptions for antidepressants in the same age group remained basically unchanged between 2003 and 2004.
According to data presented in the American Journal of Psychiatry study, prescriiption rates for minors did not drop sharply until a year later (between 2004 and 2005). Since suicide rates for 2005 are not yet available from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there is no evidence of a connection between variations in youth suicide rates and antidepressant prescriiption usage. Furthermore, experts say that trends in suicide rates, like any epidemiological data, have to be looked at over the long term and a one-year variation in rates could be a statistical artifact, or mean something else entirely.
So what's going on here? Why are some in the psychiatric community, despite lack of evidence, working to convince the American public that the FDA may have erred in putting the most serious kind of warning possible on the use of these drugs in young people? In May, the FDA, after finding the same increased risk of suicidal behaviors among young adults taking the class of antidepressants known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), extended the black box warnings to young adults. (...)
But there is another factor to consider: Who stands to benefit from the latest alarm about an apparent upturn in youth suicide rates? The sharp drop in the sale of SSRIs since 2004 has put a big dent in their manufacturers' bottom line.
These companies have an enormous stake in reversing the current FDA warnings. That might explain why Pfizer (the maker of Zoloft) contributed $30,000 to cover the cost of collecting data for the American Journal of Psychiatry study, which was also funded by the National Institute of Mental Health. It's also worth noting that the two lead authors of the paper have disclosed financial conflicts of interest: Columbia professor of psychiatry Dr. John Mann has been a paid consultant to at least two SSRI makers, Pfizer and GlaxoSmithKline (the maker of Paxil), and Robert Gibbons has served as an expert witness for Wyeth Pharmaceuticals (the maker of Effexor, another SSRI). (...)
Antidepressant Prescriiptions: The Real Trend
pharmalot.com 18.9.2007
Two weeks ago, the controversy over antidepressants and Black Box warnings for suicides re-emerged after yet another study in the American Journal of Psychiatry suggested that prescriiptions fells due to the publicity given the issue three years ago. Then, CDC data was released showing a rise in suicide among youngsters in 2004 - before the warnings actually showed up on labeling. (...)
Scrips for male and female youngsters between 10 and 19 years old were rising between 2001 and 2003, although the rate of growth was actually slowing. Then, 2004 was relatively flat. There was a dramatic drop in 2005, but prescriiptions appeared to have leveled off again in 2006. Look at the chart and see for yourself. (...)
So what are the implications? A drop is a drop. But the hand-wringing by the APA may be overwrought. For the moment, the downturn in scrips has stopped. And there’s nothing to suggest scrips aren’t being written. Instead, what the data may indicate is that, perhaps, the publicity has served to remind some docs that antidepressant scrips shouldn’t be written wily-nily. (...)
Suicide Scares Show There's Money in Dosing Children for Pharma
opednews.com 17.9.2007
Long before the New York Times reported in September that youth suicides were up 8% from 2003 to 2004 and experts indict black box warnings on antidepressants which the FDA imposed in 2004, pharma has been trying to plant a favorable antidepressants/suicide story. (...)
Did we get it all wrong about SSRIs and youth suicide?
National Review of Medicine.2007;4(16) (SEPTEMBER 30)
New data shows suicide spike after warnings.
Kids undertreated (...)
Experts Question Study on Youth Suicide Rates
depression.about.com 14.9.2007
Previously we reported about two studies which found an increase in youth suicide following a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) mandated warning label regarding the risk of suicidal thoughts in children taking SSRI antidepressants. Outside experts who took a look at one of the studies, published in The American Journal of Psychiatry, say the data do not support the authors' conclusion that the warning label may have scared parents away from treatment, thus leading to more suicide. (...)
In an interview with The New York Times, Dr. Robert D. Gibbons, lead author of the study, acknowledged that their data did not support a causal link. “We really need to see the 2005 numbers on suicide to see what happened,” he said. Dr. Gibbons defended his paper, however, saying “this study was suggestive, that’s what we’re saying.”
It looks like we will have to wait for further research to find out the real effect of the warning label. (...)
Experts Question Study on Youth Suicide Rates (Eksperter stiller spørsmål ved selvmordsrater hos ungdommer)
nytimes.com 14.9.2007
Last week, leading psychiatric researchers linked a 2004 increase in the suicide rate for children and adolescents to a warning by the Food and Drug Administration about the use of antidepressants in minors. The F.D.A. warning, the researchers suggested, might have resulted in severely depressed teenagers going without needed treatment.
But the data in the study, which was published in The American Journal of Psychiatry and received widespread publicity, do not support that explanation, outside experts say.
While suicide rates for Americans ages 19 and under rose 14 percent in 2004, the number of prescriiptions for antidepressants in that group was basically unchanged and did not drop substantially, according to data from the study. Prescriiption rates for minors did fall sharply a year later, but the suicide rates for 2005 are not yet available from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“There doesn’t seem to be any evidence of a statistically significant association between suicide rates and prescriiption rates provided in the paper” for the years after the F.D.A. warnings, said Thomas R. Ten Have, a professor of biostatistics at the University of Pennsylvania.
In the report published last week, the authors analyzed data on suicides and antidepressant use over several years in the United States and the Netherlands. They argued that drug regulators may have created a larger problem by requiring pharmaceutical companies to place warnings on antidepressants, scaring away patients and doctors. The F.D.A. warning label says that a potential side effect in young people is an increase in suicidal thoughts and behavior.
“The most plausible explanation is a cause and effect relationship: prescriiption rates change, therefore suicides change,” said Dr. J. John Mann, a psychiatrist at Columbia University and a co-author of the study.
But Dr. Ten Have and other experts, while noting that it may still turn out that a reduction in prescriiptions is leading to increased suicides among young people, said that the new study neither proved nor disproved this. Instead, some experts say, the study illustrates why suicide trends are so difficult to understand — and why this debate has been so polarizing and confusing.
In an interview, Robert D. Gibbons, a professor of biostatistics and psychiatry at the University of Illinois at Chicago and the lead author of the journal article, acknowledged that the data from the United States that he and his colleagues analyzed did not support a causal link between prescriiption rates and suicide in 2004. “We really need to see the 2005 numbers on suicide to see what happened,” he said. (...)
But many uncertainties remain. While the suicide rate for adolescents has fallen over the last decade, it has remained largely unchanged for the overall population, though prescriiptions for psychiatric medicines have risen sharply in all age groups. Adjusted for the demographic changes, about 11 Americans per 100,000 killed themselves in 2004, the same as in 1994. (...)
Suicide Rises in Youth; Antidepressant Debate Looms
nytimes.com 7.9.2007
In a finding that is likely to revive a debate of many years about the safety of drugs prescribed for depression, health officials reported yesterday that the rate of suicide in Americans ages 10 to 24 increased 8 percent from 2003 to 2004, the largest jump in more than 15 years. (...)
Dr. Thomas Laughren, director of the division of psychiatry products at the F.D.A., said in a conference call with reporters that the agency would need to see more data over time, linking declines in prescriiptions to suicide risk before revisiting any of its decisions. In January, after a lengthy review of drug trial data, an F.D.A. panel voted to extend the “blackbox” warning to include adults up to age 24 — and also to include cautions on the labels that untreated depression was a risk factor for suicide.
“You simply cannot reach causal conclusions” from the new C.D.C. data, Dr. Laughren said. (...)
APA: SSRIs More Likely in Suicides than in Other Young Deaths (SSRIer mer sannsynlig ved selvmord enn i andre dødsfall hos unge)
medpagetoday.com 25.5.2007
SAN DIEGO, May 25 -- Young suicide victims were significantly more likely to have SSRIs in their bloodstream than were young homicide or accident victims, investigators reported here. (...)
In an analysis of "unnatural" deaths recorded by the Virginia Medical Examiner's Office for 1987 through 2003, Antony Fernandez, M.D., and colleagues, found that selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors or the serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor venlafaxine appeared significantly more often in post-mortem toxicology of suicides than of accident or murder victims. (...)
APA: SSRIs More Likely in Suicides than in Other Young Deaths
psychiatrictimes.com 25.5.2007
SAN DIEGO, May 25 -- Young suicide victims were significantly more likely to have SSRIs in their bloodstream than were young homicide or accident victims, investigators reported here. (...)
F.D.A. Expands Suicide Warning on Drugs
nytimes.com 3.5.2007
The Food and Drug Administration ordered drug makers yesterday to add warnings to antidepressant medications, saying the drugs increase the risk of suicidal thinking or behavior in some young adults.
The drug labels, which have included similar warnings for adolescents and children since 2005, will now apply to people younger than 25. (...)
FDA Seeks Antidepressant Suicide Warning
forbes.com 2.5.2007
By ANDREW BRIDGES 05.02.07, 6:00 PM ET
Associated Press Young adults face an increased risk of suicidal thoughts and behavior when they first begin taking antidepressants and should be warned about the danger, federal health officials said Wednesday. (...)
Warnings Of Increased Suicide Risk Didn't Dampen Antidepressant Prescriiptions
medicalnewstoday.com 1.3.2007
"Black box" warnings on labels of certain antidepressants about possible increased suicide risk had no effect on the amounts of the medications prescribed in North America. (...)
FDA Panel Seeks to Balance Risks in Warnings for Antidepressants
JAMA. 2007;297:573-574.
Newer generation antidepressants should carry a broader warning of an increased risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviors in not only children and adolescents, but also young adults, recommended a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory committee after considering new data from the agency. (...)
The committee met December 13 and voted 6 to 2 in favor of extending the existing black box warnings, although members also agreed that the warning should address the benefits of treatment and the risks associated with declining treatment, said Daniel S. Pine, MD, acting chair of the committee and chief of child and adolescent research at the National Institute of Mental Health. The FDA has yet to decide whether to accept the recommendations, but typically the agency does follow its committees' advice. (...)
Akutte forgiftninger 1999 - 2004 - sykelighet og dødelighet
Grethe Helen Bøe Lilleeng Knut Joachim Berg Finn Gjertsen Erik Andrew
Tidsskr Nor Lægeforen 2007; 127: 1023-7 (19.4.2007)
(...) Resultater. I perioden 1999 - 2004 var det årlig nesten 11 000 utskrivninger etter heldøgnsopphold ved somatiske sykehus som var relatert til akutt forgiftning (hoved- og bitilstand). Mortaliteten i sykehus var 0,8 %. Årlig ble det registrert omkring 500 dødsfall etter akutt forgiftning. Omkring 80 % av forgiftningsdødsfallene fant sted utenfor sykehus. (...)
En annen svakhet er at vi ikke vet hvor mange personer som ble behandlet etter akutt forgiftning. (...)
Selv om inntak av legemidler utgjorde 73 % av sykehusforgiftningene, manglet det informasjon om type legemiddel. Dette viser hvor mangelfull nåværende informasjon om legemiddelforgiftninger er i Norsk pasientregister. (...)
Fortolkning. Resultatene tyder på økt sykelighet og stabil dødelighet etter akutte forgiftninger i Norge. Informasjonen i dødsårsaksregisteret og spesielt i pasientregisteret bør forbedres. Spesifisering av agens og bruk av ATC-koder ved legemiddelforgiftninger vil øke nytteverdien. (...)
Konklusjon
I denne undersøkelsen presenteres for første gang en nasjonal oversikt over sykelighet og dødelighet etter akutt forgiftning. Rundt 500 personer døde årlig av akutt forgiftning, derav ca. 90 i sykehus. Det betyr at 80 % av dødsfallene fant sted utenfor sykehus. Årlig var bortimot 11 000 utskrivninger etter heldøgnsopphold ved somatiske sykehus relatert til akutt forgiftning som hoved- eller bitilstand. (...)
Sjukvården anmäler inte alla självmord
sr.se 8.10.2007
Minst vart tredje självmord bland patienter anmäls aldrig till Socialstyrelsen, trots att sjukvården har en skyldighet att anmäla självmord i anknytning till vården. Det visar Ekots granskning, som är den första undersökningen sedan sjukvården blev skyldig att anmäla alla självmord enligt lex Maria. (...)
Ingemar Köhler är vice ordförande för Spes, en organisation för anhöriga och närstående till någon tagit sitt liv.
– Jag tycker rent ut sagt att det är för djävligt. Eftersom det inte bara är jag, utan så många med mig, som inte har fått höra något, säger Ingemar Köhler.
– Man måste ju fundera på om det görs en anmälan överhuvudtaget. Om det görs en anmälan, vad händer med den? Varför får man så sällan eller aldrig reda på vad som står i svaret från Socialstyrelsen? (...)
Anmälningsplikt enligt lex Maria
Sedan början av förra året är sjukvården skyldig att anmäla självmord bland patienter enligt lex Maria. Det innebär att om en patient begår självmord under eller upp till en månad efter kontakt med vården ska vårdpersonalen anmäla sig själv till Socialstyrelsen. (...)
Varför tror du att allt inte kommer fram?
– Jag tror allvarligt talat att många är rädda att de har gjort fel.
Under förra året anmäldes 362 självmord enligt lex Maria. Men totalt skedde minst 559 självmord i anslutning till vården under samma period.
Räknar man dessutom in så kallade osäkra självmord, där obduktionen visat att det troligen handlar om ett självmord är siffran 685, vilket innebär att nästan hälften av självmorden av patienter, 47 procent, inte anmälts. (...)
Önskar nytt system
Jan Beskow är ordförande i Västsvenska nätverket för Suicidprevention och har tidigare jobbat som läkare inom psykiatrin. Han vill ha ett nytt system, där utomstående experter analyserar vad som gått fel i vården när någon tar sitt liv.
– Så länge de egna organisationerna gör utredningarna så har man skygglappar och det är djup mänskligt. Det visar sig att det är så på alla områden. (...)
Flere ulykker og selvmord blant langtidsdiabetikere
dagensmedisin.no 24.5.2007
Nesten en tredel av dødsfall blant dem som har hatt diabetes type-1 siden barndommen, skyldes ulykke eller selvmord.
I sitt doktorgradsarbeid har barnelege Torild Skrivarhaug ved Ullevål Universitetssykehus fulgt 1906 barn og unge under 15 år som fikk diabetes da de var barn og ungdom for 25-35 år siden. (...)
- I løpet av perioden døde til sammen 103 av dem vi fulgte i undersøkelsen. En stor del av dødsfallene - 28 prosent - skyldtes det som klassifiseres som «voldsomme dødsfall», altså ulykker, suicid og forgiftninger, forklarer Skrivarhaug. (...)
Måtte dobbelsjekke dødsattesten
Da Torild Skrivarhaug jamførte dødsmeldingene med medisinske journaler og obduksjonsrapporter, så hun at mange av attestene unngikk å nevne selvmord.
Som en del av doktorgradarbeidet gikk barnelege Torild Skrivarhaug ved Ullevål Universitetssykehus gjennom 103 dødsattester og sam-menlignet dem med medisinske journaler og obduksjonsrapporter. I flere tilfeller var selvmord utelatt fra dødsattesten.
- Vi vet fra før at mange selvmord blir omtalt som noe annet på dødsattesten, sier hun.
Syv av 13 feilført
Opptellingen, som ble presentert i Diabetologia i oktober 2006, viste 30 tilfeller av voldsom død (selvmord og ulykke). I utgangspunktet var 20 av dem registrert som «ulykke», seks som «selvmord» og fire som «intoksikasjon» (forgiftning).
Gjennomgangen viste at syv av «ulykkene» i realiteten var selvmord. (...)
Underliggende årsak
Dette er feil føring av dødsattest. Som medlem av Verdens helseorganisasjon (WHO) er Norge forpliktet til å registrere underliggende dødsårsak.
- Ved skade eller forgiftning skal også ytre årsak registreres i dødsårsaksregisteret. Ved for eksempel drukning skal det indikeres om det skyldes ulykke, selvmord eller drap/vold. Dette blir ikke alltid gjort, og det er en kilde til feilklassifisering, forklarer forsker Finn Gjertsen ved Seksjon for selvmordsforskning og -forebygging ved Universitetet i Oslo.
Dårligere register
Dette går ut over kvaliteten på dødsårsaksregisteret.
- Det er vanlig å hevde at Norge har god kvalitet på helseregisterdata, men jeg er ikke overbevist om at vi er så gode som det gis inntrykk av. Hvis man bruker andel dødsfall som registreres med symptomer og ubestemte tilstander som indikator på kvalitet på registreringen i mortalitetsregisteret, har det nok heller skjedd en svekkelse i løpet av de siste fem-ti årene enn det motsatte, sier Gjertsen.
3000 oppfølginger
Dødsmeldingene registreres i Dødsårsaksregisteret av Statistisk Sentralbyrå (SSB). Om lag 3000 dødstilfeller i året må følges opp av SSB - fordi dødsmeldingen er uklar eller for dårlig utfylt.
I tillegg registreres dødsfall uten årsak når SSB får vite gjennom Folkeregisteret at personen er død, og dødsmeldingen aldri har kommet inn. (...)
Sleep disturbances among the elderly linked to suicide (Søvnforstyrrelser blant eldre linket til selvmord)
spiritindia.com (14.6.2007)
Sleep :: Sleep disturbances among the elderly linked to suicide
Self-reported sleep complaints among the elderly serve as a risk factor for completed suicide, according to a research abstract that will be presented Thursday at SLEEP 2007, the 21st Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies (APSS).
The study, conducted by Rebecca Bernert of Florida State University, focused on data that were collected among 14,456 community elders over a 10-year period. During this time frame, 21 individuals died by suicide. When each suicide was matched to 20 randomly-selected controls, it was discovered that disturbances in sleep, independent of depression, predicted an increased risk for eventual de ath by suicide.
"This suggests that, as a warning sign, poor sleep quality constitutes a significant and modifiable risk factor for completed suicide," said Bernert. "Evaluating sleep among at-risk patients may therefore guide and importantly inform both clinical decision-making and suicide risk assessment." (...)
Stor stigning i selvmordsforsøg blandt børn
politiken.dk 28.9.2007
Nordsjællands Hospital i Hillerød oplever – som i resten af landet – en kraftig stigning i antallet af helt unge piger, der kommer til afgiftning efter selvmordsforsøg med håndkøbspiller. (...)
I år har 113 piger og tre 3 drenge under 15 år forsøgt at tage livet af sig selv med en eller flere håndfulde hovedpinepiller.
Antallet af disse selvmordsforsøg blandt børn er tredoblet siden 1996. Det viser en opgørelse, som Landspatientregisteret har lavet for Politiken. (...)
Langt de fleste er piger, og de kaldes i daglig tale Panodil-pigerne. På Nordsjællands Hospital i Hillerød er antallet næsten firedoblet på blot seks år:
»Det er skræmmende, at det er blevet hverdag for os at starte afgiftning af børn på bare tolv år«, siger Kirsten Holm, afdelingens overlæge i Hillerød. (...)
Når psykiatri blir en byrde
Av EINAR PLYHN, forlagssjef
aftenposten.no 23.6.2007
OVERGREP. En del etterlatte etter selvmord får behov for psykiatrisk og annen helsehjelp. Jeg gikk fullstendig ned etter å ha mistet min kone og mitt eneste barn i selvmord i løpet av et år. I møte med psykiatrien ble jeg utsatt for et terapeutisk overgrep. (...)
Han skriver videre: "Undertegnede fant det ikke hensiktsmessig å gå videre med MMPI eller SCID 2, da pasienten ble vurdert til ikke å være tjent med å bli konfrontert med en slik diagnose, undertegnede har tidligere opplevd at narsissistiske pasienter har suicidert pga. krenkelse."
Ikke bare stempler seksjonsoverlegen meg med en utrolig belastende diagnose, men han har også hindret meg innsyn i diagnosen, alt under påskudd av at det er til mitt eget beste! Josef K, hovedpersonen i Kafkas roman "Prosessen", ville umiddelbart kjent igjen tenkningen. (...)
Pasienter betaler regningen.
Hvis det på toppen av individuell svak kompetanse heller ikke finnes et tilstrekkelig kritisk faglig fellesskap rundt vurderingene til den enkelte terapeut, blir resultatet en institusjon helt uten aktive korreksjonsmekanismer. (...)
Hva gjelder min egen sak, har jeg skrevet til institusjonen jeg først var på og bedt dem slette den famøse diagnosen. Men fordi de ikke svarer, har jeg måttet henvende meg til Helsetilsynet og bedt om deres hjelp.
Der står saken i skrivende stund. (...)
Rettssikkerheten undergraves
EINAR PLYHN, Forlagssjef
aftenposten.no 23.12.2007
Psykiatridebatt. Norsk psykiatri krenker mange pasienter. De få som orker å klage, møter mye motstand. La meg kort omtale to av motstandsregimene som undergraver rettssikkerheten innen psykiatrien. (...)
Det er selvsagt ikke tilfeldig at nettopp de sidene som vedrører min klage manglet. Ullevål fortsetter slik å krenke min lovfestede rett til fullt innsyn i journalen. Men selv ledelsen på Ullevål synes å mene at såpass må jeg tåle.
Dessverre hjalp det ikke å løfte saken opp til Helsetilsynet. Tilsynet vegret seg nemlig for å gå inn i klagen, før det plutselig slo fast at brevet med den krenkende diagnosen rett og slett var "faglig argumentering". (...)
Fullstendig rettsløs.
Når behandlingssted og helsetilsyn legger seg til i samme seng, er det ikke mulig for noen å vinne frem med en klage. Men det er svært alvorlig når klagebehandlingen etterlater klagerne med opplevelsen av å være fullstendig rettsløse.
Hvorfor tar ingen ansvar for rettssikkerheten i psykiatrien? (...)
Selvmord - en folkehelseutfordring
Arne Holte Avdelingsdirektør ved Nasjonalt folkehelseinstitutt, og professor dr. philos., Psykologisk institutt, Universitetet i Oslo.
dagbladet.no 11.9.2004
(...) Samlet har selvmordstallet siden 1994 holdt seg stabilt på 12-13 per 100 000, dvs. 550 selvmord i året. I 2002 viser tallene 11 selvmord per 100 000, dvs. nær 500 tilfeller.
Noe av denne siste nedgang kan skyldes dårligere registrering. For samtidig registrerte vi sterk økning i dødsfall uten angitt årsak. Dette skjuler trolig flere selvmord. Fortsetter forringelsen av dødsårsaksregistreringen, vil det fort lede til at vår oversikt over selvmordsutviklingen svekkes. Uten pålitelig helsestatistikk kan forebyggende tiltak ikke målrettes, liv kan unødig gå tapt og penger ødsles. (...)
Extreme suicidality following serotonin syndrom (Ekstrem selvmordstendens som følge av serotonin syndrom)
British Journal of psychiatry 1995;167:410
(...) Dette tilfellet tyder på at det, som et resultat av serotonin syndrome, kan ha oppstått økt sensitivitet selv ved forsiktig reintroduksjon av et legemiddel med serotoninerge egenskaper (clomipramine). Selv om serotonin syndrom er sjelden forekommende, er det påkrevet at pasienter nøye følges i tiden etter at TSS er påvist”. (...) (This case suggests that, following serotonin syndrome, increased sensitivity to even cautious reinstatement of a drug with serotonergic properties (clomipramine), may occur. Although the serotonin syndrome is rare, careful study of patients in the aftermath of TSS is indicated.)
Hun gjorde gjentagende forsøk på å skade seg selv, og forsøkte å innta ulike objekter, mens hun uttalte ”Jeg føler meg så fryktelig dårlig at jeg vil dø” (...) (She made continues effort to lacerate herself and tried to ingest various objects, stating ”I feel so awful I must die”.).
(Anm: TSS: Toxic Serotonin Syndrome).
Homofile blir mobbet og banket
aftenposten.no 13.9.2007
Unge homofile mobbes over en lav sko. Halvparten har vært utsatt for vold og trusler. (...)
Det er først og fremst jevnaldrende som utøver volden.
- Unge homofile er fortsatt en utsatt minoritetsgruppe. De aller yngste er en særlig sårbar og utsatt gruppe, konstaterer forsker Bera Ulstein Moseng ved Norsk Institutt for forskning om oppvekst, velferd og aldring, NOVA. Hun har hatt hovedansvaret for rapporten "Vold mot lesbiske og homofile tenåringer", som offentliggjøres i dag. (...)
Deprimert.
Undersøkelsen avdekker også at unge homofile og lesbiske er mer deprimert enn andre, de føler i større grad at livet er et slit, de har større søvnproblemer og de tenker oftere på å avslutte livet fordi det oppleves som meningsløst. (...)
New study adds weight to criticisms of antidepressant warnings
pharmatimes.com 10.9.2007
(...) A study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry (164: 1356-1363, September 2007) looked at prescriiption rates in the US and the Netherlands for SSRIs in children and adolescents aged up to 19 years between 2003 and 2005. (...)
Comparable rates of mood stabilizers, antipsychotics and antidepressants were prescribed for both age groups, although young patients were more likely to receive one of the newer atypical antipsychotics such as Abilify (aripiprazole, Bristol-Myers Squibb) or Zyprexa (olanzapine, Eli Lilly). (...)
Suicide spike puzzles experts (Selvmordsstigning forvirrer forskerne)
dailyiowan.com 19.12.2007
Both local and national experts can only speculate on the implications of a new report showing an increase in the suicide rate of middle-age Americans.
The study, released Dec. 14 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, found suicides by individuals between the ages of 45 and 54 rose 19.5 percent between 1999 and 2004 - 18.4 percent higher than the suicide rate increase for Americans between 20 and 29. The overall suicide rate rose 4.3 percent in America, from 29,199 suicides to 32,439.
Despite the report's breakdown of the statistics into age groups, experts have not drawn many conclusions.
John Westefeld, a UI professor of psychological and quantitative foundations who has studied suicidology since the late 1970s, said the more research one does in the field, the more complicated the field can become. (...)
"There really isn't an apparent trend that we see," she said.
On a national level, the American Association of Suicidology is dedicated to understanding and preventing suicide. It hosts three annual conferences and provides various services to suicide survivors, such as the directory of survivor support groups. It also lists the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline contact number, 1-800-273-TALK, on its website. (...)
Suicide and the internet
Letters
BMJ 2008;336:905-906 (26 April)
Study misses internet’s greater collection of support websites
I’m unsure why Biddle et al’s study of suicide and the internet focused on methods of suicide rather than on support, treatment, interventions, crisis hotlines, or information on how to stop or prevent suicide.1 Suicidal behaviour encompasses all of this and much more. (...)
Oppmuntres til selvmord
helserevyen.no 14.4.2008
Internett domineres av nettsider der unge mennesker oppfordres til å begå selvmord, viser en engelsk studie.
Forskningsartikkelen Suicide and the internet er publisert i det engelske fagtidsskriftet British Medical Journal.
Forskerne fra universitetene i Bristol, Oxford og Manchester fant at mennesker som søker informasjon om selvmord på nettet, lettere kommer frem til sider som oppfordrer til handlingen enn som tilbyr støtte. (...)
Sjokkrapport om selvmord
na24.no 12.4.2008
Undersøkelsen viser at personer som søker informasjon om selvmord lettere blir ledet til sider som forherliger handlingen enn forebygger den.
Det er større sannsynlighet for å finne nettsider som oppfordrer til selvmord enn de som tilbyr hjelp, viser undersøkelse.
Fagbladet British Medical Journal melder at mennesker, som søker informasjon om selvmord på nettet, lettere kommer frem til sider som oppfordrer til handlingen enn som tilbyr støtte, ifølge BBC. (...)
Suicide and the internet (Selvmord og internett)
BMJ 2008;336:800-802 (12 April)
Media reporting of suicide and its fictional portrayal on television are known to influence suicidal behaviour, particularly the choice of method used.1 2 3Indeed, epidemics of suicides using particular methods have occurred after media portrayal of their use.3 4 5As some methods of suicide are more likely to cause death than others,6 such influences may affect the outcome of suicide attempts and national suicide rates.7 (...)
A very sick empire
haaretz.com 28.9.2008
It is said that in 1929, when the stock exchange on Wall Street collapsed, hundreds of speculators jumped to their deaths through the windows of the Manhattan skyscrapers in which they worked. In reality, only a few suicides actually occurred. The real blow was felt three years after the stock exchange fell, when a large-scale crisis in the banking sector plunged the U.S. economy into an economic depression that nearly lasted until the end of the decade. In 1932, the number of suicides in the U.S. reached a record high. (...)
– Skoleskyting kan skje i Norge
forskning.no 24.9.2008
Oslo (NTB-Linus Hauge): Det er ikke tvil om at skoletragedier som den i Finland tirsdag også kan skje i Norge, mener voldsforsker Kåre T. Pettersen. (...)
Voldsforsker Ragnhild Bjørnebekk ved Psykologisk institutt ved Universitetet i Oslo vil ikke gå like langt som kollegaen ved Høgskolen i Østfold når det gjelder faren for slike tragedier her hjemme.
– Jeg tror ikke dette vil kunne skje i Norge, men vi kan aldri si aldri, sier Bjørnebekk til NTB.
Bjørnebekk som tidligere var forsker ved Politihøgskolen, sier man vet om rundt 50 slike skolemassakrer siden 1970-tallet. (...)
Suicide attempt a depressing drug side effect
theaustralian.news.com.au 20.9.2008
THIS is a story that can be interpreted in more ways than one. It's about a 14-year-old Melbourne schoolgirl whom we'll call Sarah. When you're 14, you don't want the rest of the world knowing your business, especially not the bit about the time you overdosed and wound up in hospital. (...)
The evidence, according to them, is lying on the dining table in their lounge room the day the mother and I meet. It is an empty packet of the antidepressant Zoloft. Their daughter took half a 50mg tablet for three days, as instructed by her doctor, then on the fourth day emptied the rest of the packet down her throat in one long gulp. (...)
Helsetilsynet refser sykehus etter selvmord
aftenposten.no 17.9.2008
Helsetilsynet mener Akershus universitetssykehus gjorde flere grove feil da en 26 år gammel kvinne tok sitt eget liv for to år siden.
26-åringen var innlagt etter selvmordsforsøk, men ble friskmeldt og skrevet ut fra psykiatrisk avdeling ved Akershus universitetssykehus (Ahus). Elleve dager senere tok hun sitt eget liv. (...)
Sygehus nedtoner patients risiko for selvmord
politiken.dk 14.9.2008
Sygehus ændrede forklaring, da Embedslægen spurgte til patient, der begik selvmord. (...)
Men det skriver overlægen, der var ansvarlig for behandlingen, ikke i sin redegørelse til Embedslægen. Han konstaterer blot, at der var tale om en »mulig suicidalfarlighed«.
Personalet vurderer en patients risiko for at begå selvmord for at afgøre, hvor tæt de skal observere ham.
»Lægen dækker sig ind for at undgå, at han selv og resten af personalet kommer i skudlinjen for at have gjort noget forkert. Det skal vi ikke acceptere«, siger Nethe Zajaczkowska, Sinds talskvinde. (...)
Suicides by pregnant women, new mothers under-reported
sindhtoday.net 12.9.2008
Sydney, Sep 12 (IANS) Nearly twice as many women commit suicide during pregnancy or the time around childbirth than previously thought, according to University of New South Wales researchers.
The results highlighted the significance of perinatal (period shortly before and after birth) mental health, with suicide being the leading cause of indirect death, followed by cardiac disorders. Deaths from accidents and violence are also significant. (...)
Sygeplejersker kan hindre selvmordsforsøg
berlingske.dk 10.9.2008
Hvis en sygeplejerske aktivt opsøger folk, som har forsøgt at begå selvmord, kan man reducere risikoen for yderligere forsøg markant, viser opsigtsvækkende undersøgelse.
Der skal meget lidt til at undgå, at et menneske, der har forsøgt selvmord, forsøger igen. En række besøg eller opkald fra en sygeplejerske er nok til at reducere risikoen med 38 procent, viser en endnu ikke offentliggjort undersøgelse fra Amager Hospital, skriver Kristeligt Dagblad. (...)
Suicide Rate Among Young Male Veterans Reaches Record High in 2006, Department of Veterans Affairs Reports
kaisernetwork.org 9.9.2008
The suicide rate among young male veterans who served during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan reached a record high in 2006, the latest year for which records are available, according to data released on Tuesday by the Department of Veterans Affairs, USA Today reports.
According to the data, the suicide rate among male veterans ages 18 to 29 who use VA services increased to 46 suicides per 100,000 in 2006, compared with a rate of 20 per 100,000 among male civilians in the same age group. The data also indicate that 141 male veterans who left the military after Sept. 11, 2001, committed suicide between 2002 and 2005, compared with 113 in 2006. The data did not specify the number of those 113 veterans who were in combat. (...)
VA report: Male U.S. veteran suicides at highest in 2006
usatoday.com 8.9.2008
WASHINGTON — Suicide rates for young male Iraq- and Afghanistan-era veterans hit a record high in 2006, according to statistics to be released Tuesday by the Department of Veterans Affairs. (...)
- Kan unngå mange av de spontane tragediene
dagbladet.no 7.9.2008
FIKK BEDRE SIKRING: Tromsø-brua, mellom Tromsø og Tromsdalen, ble for en tid tilbake utstyrt med rekkverk. Det har gitt en reduksjon i antall selvmordsforsøk. (...)
- Det er et behov, og vi ønsker at det også kan gjøres andre steder, på lik linje med andre tiltak som gjøres ved selvmordsforebyggende arbeid, sier informasjonsansvarlig i LEVE Therese Grøm. (...)
Guns and Suicide in the United States
NEJM 2008;359:989-991 (September 4)
(...) In 2005, the most recent year for which mortality data are available, suicide was the second-leading cause of death among Americans 40 years of age or younger. Among Americans of all ages, more than half of all suicides are gun suicides. In 2005, an average of 46 Americans per day committed suicide with a firearm, accounting for 53% of all completed suicides. Gun suicide during this period accounted for 40% more deaths than gun homicide. (...)
Elevated Rate Of Teen Suicide Stirs Concern
online.wsj.com 3.9.2008
Trend Is Linked to Drop in Use Of Antidepressants After FDA Raised Worries
A new study may bolster the argument that a drop in the use of antidepressants has led to an increase in teen suicides.
Researchers said an analysis that included 2005 data -- the latest available -- shows that a surprising rise in the youth suicide rate in 2004 was largely sustained into the next year. While the rate dropped somewhat in 2005, researchers said, it remained higher than expected. The rise in suicides coincided with Food and Drug Administration advisories about antidepressants that led to an October 2004 decision to require strong "black box" warnings on all antidepressants' labels. (...)
Teen Suicide Rates Remain Abnormally High
medpagetoday.com 2.9.2008
COLUMBUS, Ohio, Sept. 2 -- Suicides among 10- to 19-year-olds in 2005 remained well above expected levels for a second straight year, researchers here said.
From 1996 to 2003, teen suicide rates underwent a steady decline, but in 2004, the overall rate suddenly increased 18% from the previous year.
In 2005, the most recent year for such data, the rate was somewhat lower than the previous year -- 4.49 per 100,000 versus 4.74 in 2004 -- but the level was still well above the 95% confidence limit of projections based on the previous trend (95% CI 3.47 to 4.15).
So reported Jeffrey A. Bridge, Ph.D., of Nationwide Children's Hospital, and colleagues in the Sept. 3 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. He said the finding suggests that the jump seen in 2004 was not a statistical anomaly. (...)
Suicide risks studied in drugs for physical ills
ap.google.com 31.8.2008
WASHINGTON (AP) — Cody Miller was a high school football player who was allergic to ragweed. Douglas Briggs was a doctor coping with pain from an old back injury.
Both are now dead, hanging victims driven to suicide, their families believe, when drugs prescribed to relieve physical symptoms upset their mental and emotional balance.
Federal drug regulators are investigating to see if the families could be right. (...)
List of drugs with suicide concerns
ap.google.com 31.8.2008 (Associated Press)
A list of some prescriiption medications for which concerns have been raised involving suicidal thoughts and actions:
_All antidepressants. Drugs such as Prozac, Paxil, Wellbutrin and Zoloft carry required warnings that the medications can increase suicidal thinking and behavior in some children, adolescents and young adults.
_Anticonvulsives. Drugs such as Depakote, Lyrica and Neurontin are used to treat seizures and other conditions. A recent FDA analysis found a small increased risk of suicidal thinking and behavior. An advisory panel recommended against applying the agency's strongest warning to the drugs.
_Chantix. The FDA is investigating whether the smoking cessation drug triggers psychiatric symptoms.
_Singulair. The FDA is investigating whether the drug for asthma and allergies can prompt suicidal thoughts.
_Accutane. The acne drug carries a warning that it may cause suicidal thoughts and behavior in rare cases. (...)
FDA lacks requirement for suicide screening of medications that affect the brain
startribune.com 31.8.2008
(...) Until now, the Food and Drug Administration's attention to the suicide risks of medications has focused on psychiatric drugs, such as antidepressants prescribed to youngsters. But this year, officials unexpectedly broadened their concerns to include a medication for asthma, drugs for controlling seizures and even one for quitting smoking. Those are medical conditions not usually associated with psychiatric disorders. (...)
Drugged girl, 15, a reluctant bomb martyr (Dopet 15. årig jente, motvillig bombemartyr)
scotsman.com 30.8.2008
RANIA is only 15, but in the past week the softly-spoken Iraqi girl has been drugged and strapped with explosives, before being arrested and thrown into a detention centre.
Now she finds herself at the heart of a propaganda war waged by the Iraqi security forces against the al-Qaeda militants who tried to use her as a suicide bomber. (...)
'Let victims' families close suicide tribute websites'
timesonline.co.uk 28.8.2008 (The Times)
Families of suicide victims should be able to demand the immediate shutdown of the victim's pages on social networking websites, the MP for Bridgend, the South Wales town at the centre of a series of youth suicides, has told a conference in Glasgow. (...)
Injured troops increasingly turning to prescriiption medication
rutlandherald.com 27.8.2008
In the last six months of his life, Staff Sgt. Mark Waltz tried 23 different prescriiption medications to relieve the pain of war.
He came home from his second tour of Iraq suffering from combat stress, a traumatic brain injury and relentless back pain. (...)
Some experts question the wisdom of prescribing Topamax widely to soldiers.
This year, the Food and Drug Administration warned that some anti-epileptic drugs, including topiramate (generic Topamax), increase the likelihood of suicidal thoughts and behavior, although the overall risk remains low. (...)
Annual surveys by a military mental-health advisory team, however, have asked soldiers whether they have taken medicine for mental health, combat stress or sleep problems.
The number who said "yes" jumped from 8 percent in 2004 to 14 percent in 2005, then dipped to 12 percent in 2006.
Last year, one in eight soldiers surveyed in Iraq and one in seven in Afghanistan said they had taken sleeping pills or antidepressants. (...)
Poverty and isolation blamed for big rise in suicides
timesonline.co.uk 26.8.2008 (The Times)
A massive rise in the number of young men and those in early middle age who have taken their own lives has sustained Scotland's unenviable reputation as one of Europe's suicide blackspots. (...)
The Scottish figures were published ahead of a European conference on suicide and suicidal behaviour, being held in Glasgow this week. (...)
The Bridge of Death
abcnews.go.com 26.8.2008
A Controversial Film Documents Suicides in Their Final Moments on the Golden Gate Bridge (...)
More Than 50% of College Students Felt Suicidal
abcnews.go.com 18.8.2008
New Study Suggests Problem of Suicide in University Students Is Growing
Aug. 18, 2008— BOSTON -- A comprehensive study of suicidal thinking among college students found more than half of the 26,000 surveyed had suicidal thoughts at some point during their lifetime. The web-based survey conducted in spring 2006 used separate samples of undergraduate and graduate students from 70 colleges and universities across the country. (...)
The findings, which were presented Sunday at a session of the American Psychological Association's annual meeting, were compiled from online surveys conducted by the National Research Consortium of Counseling Centers in Higher Education based at the UT-Austin. (...)
Patterns of suicide by occupation in England and Wales: 2001–2005
The British Journal of Psychiatry (2008) 193: 73-76
(...) Results
Among men, in 2001–2005, construction workers, and plant and machine operatives had the greatest number of suicides. The highest PMRs were for health professionals (PMR=164) and agricultural workers (PMR=133). Among women, administrative and secretarial workers had the greatest number of suicides yet the highest PMRs were found for health (PMR=232), and sport and fitness (PMR=244) occupations. (...)
Study: Suicide thoughts common in college students
bostonherald.com 17.8.2008
More than half of 26,000 students from 70 colleges and universities who completed a survey on suicidal experiences reported having at least one episode of suicidal thinking during their lives.
Fifteen percent said they seriously considered acting on the thoughts and more than five percent reported making at least one suicide attempt. (...)
Depression Prompts Thoughts Of Death In Cancer Patients
medicalnewstoday.com 12.8.2008
Cancer patients are three times more likely to think they would be "better off dead" or to contemplate suicide than the rest of the population - a Cancer Research UK study reports online today.
Patients were most likely to have these thoughts if they had substantial pain and particularly if they had serious emotional distress. (...)
Some suicides don't count
imt.ie 8.8.2008
Up to 200 suicides might not be accounted for each year because some car crashes, drownings and other incidents are not being acknowledged as suicide, a prominent TD and activist has warned. (...)
Sharp fall in number of autopsies 'puts patients' lives at risk' (Kraftig fall i antall obduksjoner "setter pasienters liv i fare")
independent.co.uk 3.8.2008
Autopsy numbers have fallen by up to 90 per cent in some areas in recent years, and that is making it harder to spot trends in disease development, misdiagnoses and evidence of substandard care.
Medical errors are picked up in nearly 40 per cent of post-mortem examinations, which offer a vital tool for improving patient care. Health officials then scrutinise death certificates to identify public health priorities. (...)
There are two types of autopsy: those ordered by a coroner for sudden and suspicious deaths, and those in which doctors need consent from bereaved relatives for patients who die in hospital. The current crisis is in the latter group.
Consent autopsies were once carried out on 10 per cent of people who died in hospital. But The Independent on Sunday has discovered that in some areas less than 1 per cent of deaths now result in an autopsy. (...)
The number of autopsies plummeted following the Bristol and Alder Hey organ-retention scandals. But research by the Royal College of Pathologists found the decline is largely due to doctors no longer asking relatives for permission.
Some doctors may not want to risk finding out they did something wrong or could have done better, according to Professor Furness. "The reason to request a post-mortem is to essentially find out if you got it right or not, so it may be easier for some doctors not to find out," he said. (...)
The number of suicides in England has reached a record low, figures show
telegraph.co.uk 1.8.2008
Particular progress has been made in cutting the number of young men who killed themselves a study has found, although prison suicide rates rose significantly.
The three-year average was 8.3 suicides per 100,000 people in 2004-06, down from 8.5 in the previous three years, according to the National Institute for Mental Health in England report. (...)
New report shows national suicide rate at record low
7thspace.com 2.8.2008
Continued fall in suicide rate among young men
The national suicide rate is at its lowest ever level, Care Services Minister Ivan Lewis announced today following publication of the latest progress report from the National Institute for Mental Health in England. The report also expressed continued concern about the dangers of insensitive media reporting following events in Bridgend.
The 2007 Annual Report of the National Suicide Prevention Strategy for England highlights progress made over the last year: (...)
The latest annual report of the National Suicide Prevention Strategy for England can be found at http://www.nimhe.csip.org.uk (...)
Suicides up sharply in English prisons
reuters.com 1.8.2008
LONDON (Reuters) - Suicides in English prisons rose by over 15 percent last year, but overall the national suicide rate is at its lowest-ever level, the Department of Health said on Friday.
While 82 prisoners took their own lives between 2007 and 2008, the overall suicide rate in England was 8.3 deaths per 100,000 people for the three year period of 2004-2006, compared with the previous three-year average of 8.5.
Britain's prison population is over 80,000, close to total capacity, with many held in police cells. (...)
Guns and Health
NEJM 2008;359:517-518 (July 31)
(...) It is well documented in the medical literature that regulation of guns benefits the public health. For example, a careful study4 demonstrated that the 1976 restrictive handgun law in the District of Columbia, which was the focus of the Heller case, resulted in an immediate decline of approximately 25% in homicides and suicides by firearms, but there was no such decline in adjacent areas that did not have restrictive laws.
With the weakening of handgun regulations, we are very concerned about the health of the public, especially young people, whose safety is disproportionately affected by firearms. We have a heightened concern about suicide, in which impulsivity may have an important role; ready access to a gun may significantly increase the risk of completion.5,6 We believe that a sensible level of regulation is essential. There is no language in the Constitution that would limit regulation. (...)
Study identifies DNA changes in major depression, suicide
scienceblog.com 30.7.2008
Autopsies usually point to a cause of death, but now a study of brain tissue collected during these procedures may explain an underlying cause of major depression and suicide, according to University of Western Ontario researcher. (...)
“We have about 40,000 genes in every cell and the main reason a brain cell is a brain cell is because only a small fraction of the genes are turned on,” says Poulter. “The remaining genes that are not expressed are shut down by an epigenetic process called DNA methylation.”
The rate of methylation in the suicide brains was found to be much greater than that of the control group. Importantly, one of the genes they studied was shown to be heavily chemically modified and its expression was reduced. This particular gene plays a major role in regulating brain activity.
“Interestingly enough, adds Poulter, the nature of this chemical modification is long term and hard to reverse, and this fits with depression. (...)
Japan's suicide epidemic tied to economy
freep.com 24.7.2008
TOKYO -- A deadly suicide fad is sweeping Japan: Hundreds of Japanese have killed themselves this year by mixing ordinary household chemicals into a lethal cloud of poison gas that often injures others and forces the evacuation of entire apartment blocks. (...)
Otte-årige børn forsøger selvmord
avisen.dk 21.7.2008
Flere og flere børn er i selvmordsfare. Sådan lyder meldingen fra landets hospitaler. Det er ofte en desperat reaktion på mobning, kærestesorger og problemer med forældre. (...)
- Vi får stadig flere og flere - ofte helt ned til 11 år. I langt de fleste tilfælde er der tale om piger, der har spist en overdosis af piller, og i langt de fleste tilfælde sker det som en akut reaktion på kærestesorg eller mobning, siger oversygeplejerske Else Lervad til Fyens Stiftstidende. (...)
SUICIDE AND PROPHYLAXIS (Selvmord og profylakse (forebyggelse av sykdom))
JAMA 100 Years Ago (July 18, 1908)
JAMA 2008;300(3):340 (July 16)
(...) Perhaps the most interesting phase of this question of the relation of the weather to suicide is that advanced by Prof. Edwin G. Dexter.2 He found by a comparison between the dates of nearly 2,000 cases in the city of New York and the records of the New York weather bureau on the days for which these suicides occurred, that not only is the tendency to suicide greatest in the spring and summer months, "but it is most marked on the clearest, sunniest and pleasantest days of these months. The clear dry days show the greatest number of suicides and the wet, partly cloudy days the least; and with differences too great to be attributed to accident or chance."
One other curious feature is that in times of stress the suicide rate always drops. During war time suicides are much less frequent than in peace. Other forms of stress, however, have the same favorable influence. Before the earthquake at San Francisco the suicides of that city averaged twelve a week. After the earthquake, when the whole population was homeless, destitute and exposed to hardships of every kind, there were only three suicides in three months. The decrease in the suicide rate was more than 97 per cent. (...)
Physician Suicide Rates Suggest Lack of Treatment: Greater awareness of depression needed
Clinical Psychiatry News 2008;36(7):1 (July)
Each day in the United States, roughly one doctor dies by suicide. Studies over the past 4 decades have confirmed that physicians—especially women physicians—die by suicide more frequently than people in other professions or those in the general population.
“Physicians have the means and the knowledge and access to ways to kill themselves,” Dr. Paula Clayton, a psychiatrist and medical director for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, said in an interview. (...)
Europe and Suicide
brainblogger.com 12.7.2008
Try and grasp this statistic: the number of people who commit suicide in the EU is larger than the number of people who die in road collisions. And so you can put it in perspective: 50,000 people die from road collisions in the EU. (...)
Children's suicide attempts raise concerns about ADHD medication
theglobeandmail.com 3.7.2008
New questions are being raised about the safety of a drug used to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder amid reports that more than 40 Canadian children have attempted suicide after taking it.
The issue highlights a long-brewing debate over the decision to prescribe powerful drugs to treat complex psychiatric problems among children.
"It does raise some concerns," said Roger McIntyre, head of the Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit at Toronto's University Health Network.
"Childhood psychiatric disorders, I think, are an area [that] in and of itself remain a controversial topic."
Health Canada said it received 189 reports of adverse reactions associated with atomoxetine, sold under the name Strattera, from the time it was put on the market in February, 2005, to the end of last year.
The reports included 55 suicide attempts - 41 of which were among children aged 6 to 17, and 12 that were adults between 18 and 45. Ages were unavailable in two reports, according to information published by Health Canada in its quarterly publication on adverse drug reactions. (...)
Inside the Mind of a Suicide Jumper
abcnews.go.com 2.7.2008
Docs Say People Who Jump May Do It Because It's Convenient (...)
Both Korshunova and Meyer jumped out of Manhattan high-rises within days of each other earlier this week, the model plummeting from her ninth-floor apartment and the doctor from a window at the city hospital where he worked.
Their method of suicide is relatively unusual. The latest statistics recorded in 2005 show that firearms made up for 52.1 percent of all suicides, hanging for 22.2 percent and poison for 17.6 percent.
Jumping from tall buildings or high bridges seems to be reserved for those who are determined to die. (...)
55 Percent of Gun Deaths in America are Suicide
shortnews.com 1.7.2008
In 2005, the most recent year for which data is available, 55 percent of the gun-related deaths in the United States were suicides. There was nothing special about 2005, as suicides have been the number-one gun death for 20 of the past 25 years. (...)
The Urge to End It All
By SCOTT ANDERSON
nytimes.com 6.7.2008
“There is but one truly serious philosophical problem,” Albert Camus wrote, “and that is suicide.” How to explain why, among the only species capable of pondering its own demise, whose desperate attempts to forestall mortality have spawned both armies and branches of medicine in a perpetual search for the Fountain of Youth, there are those who, by their own hand, would choose death over life? (...)
In a moment of deep despair or rage or sadness, they turned to what was easy and quick and deadly — “the execution chamber in everyone’s kitchen,” as one psychologist described it — and that instrument allowed little time for second thoughts. Remove it, and the process slowed down; it allowed time for the dark passion to pass. (...)
Mener nettsamfunn er skyld i selvmordsbølge
vg.no 6.7.2008
(VG Nett) En britisk psykiater mener sosiale nettsamfunn har bidratt til en selvmordsbølge. Unge mennesker kan miste kontakten med virkeligheten. (...)
Psykiater Hanne Gro Wenzel har jobbet med nettavhengighet og sier det er viktig at man ikke overdriver nettbruken slik at man mister alt sitt andre sosiale liv.
- Man må være oppmerksomme på det og at det er en balanse. Det er naturlig å bruke internett sosialt, men man må spørre seg om hvor lang tid man bruker og hva man bruker det til, sier hun til VG Nett. (...)
ADVARER MOT OVERFORBRUK: Psykiatere frykter at unge mister kontrollen på virkeligheten dersom de bruker for mye tid på internett. Foto: AFP
Ifølge Sky News mener psykiater Himanshu Tyagi at steder som Facebook og MySpace må ta noe av skylden for den mye omtalte selvmordsbølgen i Bridgend. (...)
Gun Laws and Crime: A Complex Relationship
nytimes.com 29.6.2008
Lurking behind the Supreme Court’s ruling last week that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to bear arms were a series of fascinating, disputed and now in many ways irrelevant questions. (...)
Japanese government measures fail to cut suicide rate
guardian.co.uk 20.6.2008
Almost 100 Japanese killed themselves every day last year, according to figures out yesterday, dealing a blow to a government campaign to drastically reduce the suicide rate by 2016.
A total of 33,093 people killed themselves in 2007, up 3% from 2006 and the 10th year in a row that the number has exceeded 30,000, the national police agency said. The figure is the second highest after the 34,427 recorded suicides in 2003.
Depression was identified as the main factor in around a fifth of cases, followed by physical illness and debt. The number of elderly people who killed themselves rose 9% from a year earlier as Japan grapples with a rapidly ageing society and rising poverty among pensioners. (...)
Nearly 100 Japanese commit suicide each day
guardian.co.uk 19.6.2008
An average of almost 100 Japanese people killed themselves each day last year, according to figures out today, dealing a serious blow to a government campaign to drastically reduce the suicide rate by 2016.
A total of 33,093 people committed suicide in 2007, up 3% from 2006 and the 10th year in a row the number has exceeded 30,000, the national police agency said. The figure is the second highest after the 34,427 recorded suicides in 2003. (...)
Elderly suicides surge in Japan
bbc.co.uk 19.6.2008
Japan's elderly are worried about financial issues and rising health costs
The number of elderly people who killed themselves in Japan surged in 2007, government figures showed.
Suicides involving people over the age of 60 rose by almost 9% to 12,107, making up nearly 40% of all cases in Japan, the National Police Agency said.
Japan's elderly are increasingly concerned about money and rising health care costs.
Nationwide, the number of suicides rose by 2.9% to 33,093, the second-highest figure since records began in 1978. (...)
Insomnia linked to suicide tendency in college women
dailytimes.com 16.6.2008
Poor quality sleep and insomnia are associated with suicidal symptoms among college undergraduates, according to a study of 322 female college students between 19 and 24 years old. (...)
Drink and drugs 'key' to suicide
bbc.co.uk 15.6.2008
Alcohol and drug misuse means Scots are almost twice as likely as people south of the border to take their own life or kill, a new report has said.
Research from Manchester University also showed the number of mental health patients killing themselves or others was proportionately higher in Scotland.
The report found that the north-south divide was highest among teenagers.
It said alcohol and drugs were the "most pressing mental health problems in Scotland".
The Lessons for Mental Health Care in Scotland report was commissioned by the Scottish Government. (...)
Scottish murder, suicide rate blamed on drink, drugs
afp.google.com 16.6.2008
LONDON (AFP) — Scots are almost twice as likely to kill or commit suicide as people in England and Wales, researchers said Monday, blaming the higher death rates on alcohol and drug abuse. (...)
Epidemi av selvmordsforsøk
aftenposten.no 15.6.2008
Grønland kan i år få en av de høyeste selvmordsratene i verden. Personene på bildet har ikke tilknytning til saken.
Grønland opplever en bølge av selvmordsforsøk blant unge menn. Hver femte 15-17-åring på øya har forsøkt å ta livet av seg. (...)
Viktig kritikk av hjelpeapparatet
HANS-JØRGEN WALLIN WEIHE, Førsteamanuensis i sosialt arbeid, Universitetet i Stavanger
aftenposten.no 15.5.2008
Under overskriften "Selvmord kan forhindres" beskriver Einar Plyhn i en kronikk sine erfaringer med kontakten med hjelpeapparatet. (...)
Flere selvmord hos deprimerte menn enn hos kvinner
Av Lisbeth Nilsen (Dagens Medisin)
vg.no 9.6.2008
Selv om depresjon og angst forekommer hyppigst hos kvinner, er deprimerte menn langt mer utsatt for selvmord, ifølge en norsk studie. Likevel skjer de fleste selvmord blant menn som ikke har en depresjon. (...)
Hos menn som er deprimert, er risikoen for selvmord dobbelt så stor som hos kvinner. Det fremgår av en norsk studie basert på data fra Helseundersøkelsen i Nord-Trøndelag (HUNT).
Undersøkelsen er publisert i juniutgaven av British Journal of Psychiatry (Bjerkeset m.fl.). (…)
Suicide websites and internet chatrooms could be closed down (Nettsteder og chat-rom på internett som omtaler selvmord kan bli stengt)
telegraph.co.uk 6.6.2008
Websites that encourage people to commit suicide could be shut down under changes to the law, it was disclosed today.
The sites offer users tips on taking their own life and have been linked to around 27 deaths in Britain over the last six years.
The Government is considering closing a legal loophole to outlaw the advice. (...)
America's Medicated Army (USAs medikaliserte hær)
time.com 5.6.2008
(...) Data contained in the Army's fifth Mental Health Advisory Team report indicate that, according to an anonymous survey of U.S. troops taken last fall, about 12% of combat troops in Iraq and 17% of those in Afghanistan are taking prescriiption antidepressants or sleeping pills to help them cope. Escalating violence in Afghanistan and the more isolated mission have driven troops to rely more on medication there than in Iraq, military officials say. (...)
The increase in the use of medication among U.S. troops suggests the heavy mental and psychological price being paid by soldiers fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. Pentagon surveys show that while all soldiers deployed to a war zone will feel stressed, 70% will manage to bounce back to normalcy. But about 20% will suffer from what the military calls "temporary stress injuries," and 10% will be afflicted with "stress illnesses." Such ailments, according to briefings commanders get before deploying, begin with mild anxiety and irritability, difficulty sleeping, and growing feelings of apathy and pessimism. (...)
Nearly 40% of Army suicide victims in 2006 and 2007 took psychotropic drugs — overwhelmingly, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) like Prozac and Zoloft. (...)
"The high percentage of U.S. soldiers attempting suicide after taking SSRIs should raise serious concerns," says Dr. Joseph Glenmullen, who teaches psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. "And there's no question they're using them to prop people up in difficult circumstances." (...)
2007 U.S. Army suicides are highest since 1980
azcentral.com 29.5.2008
WASHINGTON - The Army recorded 115 soldiers' suicides in 2007, the highest total since it started counting in 1980, the service announced Thursday. That's more than twice the 52 suicides in 2001, the low point reached as the war on terrorism started. (...)
The 115 deaths amount to an 18.5-per-100,000 rate, the highest rate since 1980, the Army said.
The civilian suicide rate was 19.5 per 100,000 in 2005, according to the latest statistics available from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (...)
Shocker: As Suicides Surge, Military Reveals 40,000 Cases of PTSD
huffingtonpost.com 27.5.2008
The Pentagon released new figures today revealing that 40,000 U.S. troops have been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder since the Iraq war began in 2003. Bad enough, but officials believe many more are keeping their illness secret. (...)
Four years ago David Carmichael killed his son. Now free, he is crusading against 'happy drugs,' saying they -- not him -- are to blame
torontosun.com 25.5.2008
He popped his antidepressants like candy and believes Paxil made him kill his son.
And now David Carmichael is worried drug companies will soon have the go-ahead to push their potentially dangerous "happy pills" on more unsuspecting Canadians, with similarly dire results.
With new Bill C-51, the Conservative initiative to overhaul Canada's food and drug act, critics like Carmichael worry it will open the door to big pharma circumventing the current ban on direct-to-consumer advertising. (...)
Work-related suicides rising in Japan
upi.com 24.5.200
TOKYO, May 24 (UPI) -- The number of people who committed suicide or tried to kill themselves in Japan has doubled in the last five years, a government survey indicates.
The survey conducted by Japan's Health, Welfare and Labor Ministry found the 81 suicides and attempted suicides in 2007 was twice the number recorded in fiscal 2003, The Yomiuri Shimbun reported Saturday. (...)
Gasser seg selv til døde og gjør andre syke
dagbladet.no 25.5.2008
54 personer ble forgiftet av gass fra selvmorderens oppkast. 50 japanske gass-selvmord i løpet av én måned. (...)
Hvert 15. minutt tar en japaner sitt eget liv, skriver britiske Guardian.
Myndighetene har øremerket rundt 2,2 milliarder kroner til et anti-selvmordsprogram som skal hjelpe mennesker med depresjoner og andre psykiske plager. (...)
Club fears drugs and deaths link
stuff.co.nz 23.5.2008
A rural women's group believes anti-depressants could be linked to recent suicides in South Taranaki
The Manutahi Women's Club says the drugs that may cause suicidal feelings are being too easily and willingly prescribed and usually with no patient followup or monitoring.
The club thinks general practice doctors and staff should take more responsibility for monitoring obviously depressed and potentially suicidal patients, instead of just prescribing drugs. (...)
- Fikk selvmordstanker av røykepille
vg.no 22.5.2008
Produsent: - Skyldes nikotinkuttet, ikke pillen
(VG Nett) Selvmordstanker, angst og unormale drømmer er blant bivirkningene som Statens Legemiddelverk har fått innrapportert etter bruk av røykesluttpillen Champix. (...)
Cannabis use linked to high suicide rates
news.com.au 20.5.2008
A NEW report has linked the use of cannabis to high levels of suicide and depression in Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory.
The report, published in the Medical Journal of Australia, shows cannabis use among some Aboriginal communities was at least double that of the general population. (...)
Medical know-how raises suicide risk for doctors (Medisinsk kunnskap øker legers risiko for selvmord)
washingtonpost.com 8.5.2008
CHICAGO -- There's a grim, rarely talked-about twist to all that medical know-how doctors learn to save lives: It makes them especially good at ending their own. An estimated 300 to 400 U.S. doctors kill themselves each year - a suicide rate thought to be higher than in the general population, although exact figures are hard to come by.
Some doctors believe the stigma of mental illness is magnified in a profession that prides itself on stoicism and bravado. Many fear admitting psychiatric problems could be fatal to their careers, so they suffer in silence.
And when the pain is too much, doctors have easy access to prescriiption drugs and a precise knowledge of both how the body works and the amount of a drug needed for an overdose to stop breathing and halt the heart.
"All physicians have access to neat, clean ways to commit suicide," said Dr. Robert Lehmberg, a Little Rock, Ark., surgeon who has battled depression and long considered suicide "an exit strategy if absolutely necessary." (...)
The mystery of medications linked to suicide (Mysteriet med legemidler linket til selvmord)
msnbc.msn.com 7.5.2008
As number of drug warnings rise, investigators search for reasons why
Physicians or patients have filed anecdotal reports with drug companies or the Food and Drug Administration on at least six drugs or drug classes that may have been linked to episodes of suicidal thoughts or actions. In just the past few months, the FDA has released several advisory notices to both doctors and the public about drugs linked to suicidal thoughts or actions, including Singulair, epilepsy drugs and the smoking-cessation drug Chantix. Reports have also been filed on antidepressants, the influenza drug Tamiflu and the acne medicine Accutane. (...)
"The brain is a complex organ, and most of the drugs are complex as well,’’ says Dr. Thomas Laughren, head of the division of psychiatric products at the FDA. "It’s not unreasonable to think that a drug that gets into the brain may have effects other than you hope they would have … but in some cases, it’s just a background event. That's why it's so important to follow up with an analysis of the clinical trials.’’ (...)
Post-War Suicides May Exceed Combat Deaths, U.S. Says (Update1)
bloomberg.com 5.5.2008
May 5 (Bloomberg) -- The number of suicides among veterans of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan may exceed the combat death toll because of inadequate mental health care, the U.S. government's top psychiatric researcher said. (...)
Insel echoed a Rand Corporation study published last month that found about 20 percent of returning U.S. soldiers have post- traumatic stress disorder or depression, and only half of them receive treatment. About 1.6 million U.S. troops have fought in the two wars since October 2001, the report said. About 4,560 soldiers had died in the conflicts as of today, the Defense Department reported on its Web site. (...)
Spring's dark side: An upswing in suicides
usatoday.com 4.5.2008
The sun is shining. Flowers are blooming. It's May, and many of us feel great.
But the thoughts of some vulnerable people grow dark at this seemingly bright time of year. In fact, if there is a season for suicide, springtime is it.
"It's a new beginning, but some people don't feel that new beginning," says Jerry Reed, executive director of the Suicide Prevention Action Network. pp
Japan sees wave of suicides using detergent
usatoday.com 25.4.2008
TOKYO (AP) — At least four people killed themselves Friday by inhaling fumes from a detergent mixed with other chemicals amid a wave of similar suicides that has reportedly claimed about 50 lives this month in Japan.
Authorities are alarmed by the sudden rise in such incidents — an average of two a day were reported in April — because the chemicals are easy to get and the fumes could spread to affect bystanders or rescuers. (...)
Antidepressants and suicide symptoms: compelling new insights from the FDA’s analysis of individual patient level data
Evidence-Based Mental Health 2008;11:34-35
In May 2007 the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ordered that all antidepressant drugs carry an expanded black-box warning incorporating information about an increased risk of suicidal symptoms in young adults aged 18–24 years. (...)
Paradoxically, these data have been interpreted as reinforcing and consolidating two opposing positions. On one side, it has been argued that antidepressant drugs do not kill people, the real killer is untreated depression with its high lifetime risk of suicide.2 On the opposite side of the divide it is argued that the well documented risks associated with antidepressant drugs largely prevail over uncertain benefits.3 (...)
De dødes personvern
Av Carl-Erik Grimstad
morgenbladet.no 25.4.2008
Medienes dekning av selvmord kan føre til et tolkningsanarki.
Få liker scientologene. Bevegelsens opprinnelse er tvilsom, og settes gjerne i forbindelse med organisert kriminalitet. (...) Man blir følgelig neppe upopulær i norsk offentlighet ved å kritisere scientologene. Selv insinuasjoner om at «kirkens» personlighetstest kan ha sammenheng med en ung kvinnes selvmord, synes å kunne fremsettes innenfor rammene av allment aksepterte påstander.
I den gode hensikt å avsløre hykleriet innen et kirkesamfunn, har flere av Norges største medier brutt bransjens selvpålagte tilbakeholdenhet mot å omtale selvmord. Men hva hvis situasjonen var motsatt, hva om den døde ikke var en ung jente, men en kontroversiell person med meninger vi setter mindre pris på? (...)
Selvmord for salg
na24.no 22.4.2008
Tabloidavisenes dekning av studenttragedien i Nice gjorde utelukkende de etterlatte en bjørnetjeneste. (...)
Nok et tenåringsdødsfall i Wales
vg.no 21.4.2008
Fortsatt uklart om dødsfallene har sammenheng
(VG Nett) Selvmordsbølgen i Bridgend i Wales vokser i omfang. I helgen ble den nittende tenåringen funnet død.
I løpet av et drøyt år har til sammen nitten personer under 27 år begått selvmord i den lille landsbyen Bridgend. Flere mener at tenåringene har blitt påvirket av hverandre, men politiet avviser at dødsfallene har noe med hverandre å gjøre. (...)
Dagbladet og selvmord
LEDER
dagbladet.no 19.4.2008
Dagbladet har brukt plass på dødsfallet til Kaja Bordevich Ballo (18). Ikke uventet er dekningen kritisert. Noen fagfolk og aviskommentatorer mener at selvmord ikke skal omtales. Andre mener saken har fått for store dimensjoner og at dekningen har svertet den unge kvinnens ettermæle. Det er også hevdet at selvmord bare kan omtales når offentlige personer er involvert. Dette er direkte feil, noe praksis i Pressens Faglige Utvalg viser. (...)
Vær varsom!
MARIT RÅBU - psykolog, KARSTEN HYTTEN - psykiater
aftenposten.no 18.4.2008
MEDIEKRITIKK. De siste dagene har vi sett gjentatte, store og tabloide oppslag om en ung norsk student som begikk selvmord i Nice. Oppslagene tyder på at kunnskap om hvordan selvmord kan omtales varsomt, mangler i mange redaksjoner. (...)
Kopierer selvmordssikring
nrk.no 17.4.2008
Svenskene vil stoppe selvmord på Tromsøbru-måten. (...)
Bakgrunnen var at det i 2005 ble montert ekstra høyt rekkverk på brua i Tromsø for å hindre at folk hopper utfor.
Sikringstiltaket har vært så vellykket at svenskene nå vil gjøre det samme i Sundsvall.
- Vägverket har studert internasjonal faglitteratur på selvmord og funnet ut at Tromsøbrua utpeker seg, sier distriktsvegsjef Nils Arne Johnsen til avisa Vegen og vi. (...)
Antidepressants Account For Only 10% Of Fall In Suicide Rates Among Older People
sciencedaily.com 14.4.2008
(...) Overall, treatment type made little difference, although rates among men taking SSRIs were slightly higher than among those taking tricyclics.
Suicide rates were five to six times higher among those taking antidepressants than those who were not. (...)
Hver anden socialt udsatte forsøger selvmord
politiken.dk 14.4.2008
Livet på bunden er hårdt. De socialt udsatte døjer med massive problemer, viser undersøgelse.
Næsten halvdelen af de mest socialt udsatte har forsøgt selvmord.
Det viser den første store undersøgelse af gruppens sundhed.
Rapporten, der offentliggøres mandag, viser massive problemer med sygdom, vold og sygdom. (...)
»Alarmerende resultater«
Ifølge formanden for Rådet for Socialt Udsatte, dr.med. Preben Brandt, er det første gang, det på videnskabeligt grundlag er muligt at sammenligne de udsattes sundhedstilstand med den brede befolknings, som blev kortlagt ved en stor national sundheds- og sygelighedsundersøgelse i 2005.
»Og resultaterne af den nye undersøgelse er alarmerende«, siger Preben Brandt.
Det fremgår således af undersøgelsen, der er udarbejdet af Rådet for Socialt Udsatte i samarbejde med Institut for Folkesundhed, at ikke færre end 43,2 procent af de socialt udsatte, der har været med i undersøgelsen, havde forsøgt at begå selvmord.
Tilsvarende blev procentdelen målt til 1,2 for den øvrige befolkning i 2005-undersøgelsen. (...)
FDA looks at link between medications, depression (FDA ser på link mellom legemidler, depresjon)
latimes.com 14.4.2008
Federal regulators warn that an array of drugs could play a role in spurring thoughts of suicide or other psychiatric symptoms.
As symptoms of depression go, there is none much clearer than having thoughts of suicide.
But a spate of recent announcements from federal health officials suggests a surprising new interpretation of suicidal fantasies and the depression they are thought to signal: Sometimes, sadness, anxiety and self-destructive thoughts are not symptoms but side effects -- of medicine.
In this year alone, federal regulators have warned that a surprising array of drugs could play a role in spurring thoughts of self-destruction. Medicines that treat epilepsy, asthma and influenza are now under suspicion, as is one that helps smokers kick the tobacco habit. (...)
Suicide up after anti-depressant warning
upi.com 9.4.2008
WINNIPEG, Manitoba, April 8 (UPI) -- Two years after Health Canada warned about prescribing anti-depressants to children, suicide by children and teens increased, a Manitoba study found. (...)
However, lead author Laurence Katz, a child and adolescent psychiatrist in Winnipeg, warns the increased risk of suicide could be a "random fluctuation."
Katz said that study cannot conclude that the warning, the change in antidepressant use, or drop in physician office visits resulted in changes in suicide rates.
The widely publicized drug warnings have led to more cases of untreated depression and an impact "beyond what was intended," Katz said. (...)
FDA Probing Possible Link Between Asthma Drug and Suicide Risk
healthfinder.gov 27.3.2008
Singulair, top-selling drug for teens, under review by U.S. agency and manufacturer Merck. (...)
Test may help identify suicide risk
ukpress.google.com 26.3.2008
A single sample of hair could help scientists identify if young people using drugs are more prone to suicide and self-harm.
Pioneering technology developed by the University of Ulster and the University of Castilla-La Mancha in Spain will enable researchers to carry out a complete chemical breakdown of a person's strand of hair to reveal what drugs they have taken in the past six months.
Researchers think this could lead to an important breakthrough to help to identify people at risk from suicide and self-harm by examining if prescribed anti-depressants and illegal drug use are linked. (...)
Impaired Executive Function Linked to Suicidal Behavior in Elderly
Psychiatr News 2008;43(6):28 (March 21) (© 2008 American Psychiatric Association)
Executive-function impairment is associated with suicide attempts and thoughts in elderly patients with depression and is predictive of behavior disturbance in those with dementia.
More than other dimensions of cognition, executive function appears to be a key indicator of long-term outcomes in elderly patients. Impaired executive function has been linked to greater suicide risk in patients with depression, as well as worsening behavior disturbance in dementia patients, according to two studies in the February American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry. (...)
Coroner calls for suicide strategy
icwales.icnetwork.co.uk 20.3.2008
(...) They are among 17 young people to have taken their lives in the Bridgend area since January last year. (...)
Mr Walters has expressed concern at the number of young people to have taken their lives in the Bridgend area, but said he does not believe there are any links between all the deaths. Police have publicly ruled out suicide pacts among the victims as being a trigger for the deaths. Suggestions that internet sites played a part have also been dismissed.
Mr Walters said yesterday he had to look at each of the deaths individually. “The only thing that I am happy to be placed on record as saying is that I hope these events in Bridgend, if they have done anything, will be a catalyst to give us a national strategy covering the whole of Wales for young deaths.” (...)
Stress driving pupils to suicide says union
guardian.co.uk 18.3.2008
Self-harm, anorexia, aggression and bullying are the results of increasing childhood stress, according to a survey published today by the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL).
Nearly three-quarters (73%) of the 804 teachers and lecturers believe children are under more pressure now than 10 years ago, with testing and exams, and family break-up causing the most distress. (...)
Medgift tvinger indiske kvinder til selvmord
politiken.dk 16.3.2008
Mindst seks kvinder begår selvmord hver dag i Indien på grund af pres fra ægtemand og familie i forbindelse med medgift. (...)
Sykehus granskes etter selvmords-tragedie
vg.no 12.3.2008
Psykiater slo alarm
(VG Nett) Om kvelden krasjet 32-åringen i høy fart. Morgenen etter ble han skrevet ut av sykehuset, selv om journalen angivelig viste at han var suicidal. Timer senere begikk han selvmord. (...)
Alpha Company hit hard by post-traumatic stress
philly.com 9.3.2008
Of all the things that Alpha Company has had to struggle with since it came home from Iraq, the most pervasive may be post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD.
Of the 126 veterans interviewed or surveyed by The Inquirer, almost half - 46 percent - said they had been treated for PTSD, most at VA hospitals and clinics in the region. (...)
PTSD typically is treated with psychotherapy and antidepressant drugs, including Zoloft and Paxil.
About two-thirds of Alpha veterans have received care at VA hospitals and clinics - for PTSD, physical ailments, or both. (...)
(Anm: paroksetin (paroxetine); markesføres i Norge under handelsnavn som bl.a. Seroxat; Paxil i USA.)
Selvmordsbølge blant indiske bønder
e24.no 8.3.2008
Mens India samlede økonomi vokser i turbofart, henger utviklingen på landsbygda etter. Det fører til bølger av selvmord blant landets bønder.
Fattigdommen ble for tung å bære for bonden Lunavath Bicha (35) i det sørlige India. Avlingene feilet år etter år, samtidig som det globale markedet presset ned prisene på bomull, chilipepper og ris. Med kreditorer pustende i nakken, så Bicha for seks måneder siden ingen annen løsning på fattigdommen enn å drikke insektmiddel for å ende sitt eget liv.
Tilbake sitter foreldrene, ektefellen og tre små sønner, som nå kjemper for å overleve den desperate fattigdommen på den indiske landbygda. (...)
Why So Many Female Suicide Bombers?
forbes.com 5.3.2008
An increasing number of suicide bombings in Iraq are conducted by women. U.S. and Iraqi policymakers have noted the phenomenon, which has also developed in Pakistan, but have offered differing explanations as to whether it signals the weakness of militant groups or is simply an effective, tactical terrorist innovation. (...)
- Anoreksi øker selvmordsrisiko
vg.no 4.3.2008
Selvmord er hoveddødsårsaken blant kvinner med anoreksi, viser ny amerikansk studie. (...)
- 20 unge tok sitt liv
Liss Beth Gjertsen, Lakselv
dagbladet.no 25.2.2008
Den ukjente selvmords-epidemien i Norge. (...)
Selvmordene på 80-tallet fant sted i de samiske samfunnene i Finnmark. Og hovedsakelig i samekommunen Karasjok. (...)
Den gangen skrev mediene ingenting om dette. På 80-tallet var det ikke vanlig at media omtalte selvmord. Likevel var epidemien der. Det handlet altså ikke om at media var med på å skape en slags smitteeffekt. Epidemien kom likevel.
Vi hadde ikke internett den gangen, så det handlet heller ikke om at det var en slags pakt inngått i et nettsamfunn.
Jeg tror slike epidemier vil komme uansett. Det skjer rett og slett en kollaps i samfunnet. En slags mental crack. (...)
Nær én av ti har vurdert selvmord
aftenposten.no 24.2.2008
Rusmisbruk like vanlig årsak som depresjon. (...)
Foreldre i South Wales rasende på pressen:
- Pressen glorifiserer selvmord
vg.no 20.2.2008
(VG Nett) Foreldrene til en av guttene som har blitt en del av den dystre selvmordsstatistikken i byen Bridgend, beskylder media for å ha lokket sønnen til å ta sitt eget liv. (...)
Reports of Gunman’s Use of Antidepressant Renew Debate Over Side Effects (Rapporter om revolvermanns bruk av antidepresiva gjenopptar debatten om bivirkninger)
nytimes.com 19.2.2008
Steven P. Kazmierczak stopped taking Prozac before he shot to death five Northern Illinois University students and himself, his girlfriend said Sunday in a remark likely to fuel the debate over the risks and benefits of drug treatment for emotional problems. (...)
Over the years, the antidepressant Prozac and its cousins, including Paxil and Zoloft, have been linked to suicide and violence in hundreds of patients. (...)
- Han var alt annet enn et monster
aftenposten.no 19.2.2008
Kjæresten til Steven Kazmierczak, som drepte fem studenter i Illinois, ante ikke at noe var galt.
Jessica Baty sier at hun føler med ofrene, men sier at kjæresten ikke må bli husket kun for massakren. - Han var så mye mer enn det. Han er også et offer, sier hun. (...)
Suicides, Overdoses Investigated by Army
ap.google.com 15.2.2008
WASHINGTON (AP) — There have been at least three accidental drug overdoses and four suicides among soldiers in special units the Army set up last summer to help war-wounded troops, officials said late Thursday.
A team of pharmacists and other military officials met early this week at the Pentagon to look into the deaths in so-called "warrior transition units" — established to give sick, injured and wounded troops coordinated medical care, financial advice, legal help and other services as they attempt to make the transition toward either a return to uniform or back into civilian life. (...)
Lawmakers Catch Glaxo Hiding Paxil Suicide Risks Again (Part II)
lawyersandsettlements.com 13.2.2008
Washington, DC: Apparently, GlaxoSmithKline is still trying to hide damaging information about Paxil, because 9 pages of a report released from under a court order last month, are not available to the public. However, Senator Charles Grassley has instructed Glaxo to provide him with the full report by February 14, 2008.
In the report, which is dated roughly 6 months ago on June 29, 2007, Harvard Professor, Dr Joseph Glenmullen reveals that Glaxo had clinical trial data since 1989 which showed that Paxil increases the risk of suicide by more than 8-fold compared to patients who received a placebo. (...)
Lawmakers Catch Glaxo Hiding Paxil Suicide Risks - Again (Part I)
lawyersandsettlements.com 12.2.2008
asking the company to explain the findings in a report unsealed last month in a lawsuit which shows that Glaxo knew as early as 1989 that Paxil increased the risk of suicidal behavior in patients by more than 8-fold compared to patients who received a placebo.
In a February 6, 2008 letter, Senator Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, is asking Glaxo to explain why the American public was never adequately informed of this risk until May 2006 in a "Dear Healthcare Professional" letter which reported a "higher frequency of suicidal behavior" associated with Paxil as compared to placebo. (...)
Anti-smoking drug is linked to 37 suicides
dailymail.co.uk 10.2.2008
Fears are growing over the safety of an anti-smoking "wonder drug", taken by nearly a quarter of a million Britons, after officials in America linked it to 37 suicides.
The Food and Drug Administration said it looks "increasingly likely" that there is a connection between the drug Champix and serious psychiatric problems. (...)
‘Suicide rating’ could be given to every new drug licensed in UK
timesonline.co.uk 9.2.2008
(...) Dr Posner and her team spent months creating a comprehensive questionnaire known as the Columbia Suicide Severity Rating, in which patients’ actions can be classified as either suicidal or nonsuicidal.
The questionnaire takes less than five minutes to administer and looks for four different types of suicidal behaviours. Each behaviour is rated for its severity and the drug is given an overall “suicide rating” out of 23.
The system could also vindicate the reputation of the class of antidepressant drugs known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), which are no longer prescribed to people under 18 because of fears that they encourage suicidal thoughts in this age group.
“All the previous studies that these risks were based on were not set up to assess suicide risk,” Dr Posner said. “What we can learn from them is very limited. After the warnings [about SSRIs] were issued there was a 22 per cent decline in prescriiptions in the US and in parts of Europe. There is a concerning correlation between reduced prescriiptions and increased suicide.” (...)
Antidepressant prescribing and changes in antidepressant poisoning mortality and suicide in England, 1993–2004
Journal of Public Health Advance Access published online on January 31, 2008
(...) Conclusion In England, at a population level, there does not appear to be an association between antidepressant prescribing and antidepressant poisoning mortality or suicide. (...)
Did GSK trial data mask Paxil suicide risk?
newscientist.com 6.2.2008
AN INAPPROPRIATE analysis of clinical trial data by researchers at GlaxoSmithKline obscured suicide risks associated with paroxetine, a profitable antidepressant, for 15 years, suggest court documents (897kb, requires Acrobat Reader) released last month. Not until 2006 did GSK alert people to raised suicide risks associated with the drug, marketed as Paxil and Seroxat.
“Not until 2006 did GlaxoSmithKline alert people to raised suicide risks associated with Paxil/Seroxat” (...)
Suicide Risk Factors Found Consistent Worldwide
medpagetoday.com 4.2.2008
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb. 4 -- The risk factors for suicidal thoughts, plans, and attempts seem to be similar all over the world, according to World Health Organization data. (...)
The silent epidemic of male suicide
bbc.co.uk 4.2.2008
(...) Of the 13 people who killed themselves in South Wales over the past year, all but one were men aged under 27. (...)
Med dette i minne er det verdt å nevnte to andre statistiske data: menn utgjør 73 % av mennesker som savnes hvert år, og 85 % av uteliggere. (...) (With this in mind, it is worth mentioning another two statistics: men make up 73% of people who go missing each year, and 85% of people who sleep rough.)
Key Risk Factors for Suicide Consistent Across Globe
healthfinder.gov 31.1.2008
Sex, age, education, mental health and marital status underpin findings of 17-nation study. (...)
The study, which used data collected by the World Health Organization World Mental Health Survey Initiative, looked at people in 17 nations and found that an overall average of 9.2 percent reported having seriously thought about suicide and 2.7 percent attempted suicide. It also found that suicide risk factors are associated with having a mental disorder, being female, younger, less educated, and unmarried. (...)
The findings were published in the February issue of the British Journal of Psychiatry. (...)
Army suicides, attempts rise again
yahoo.com 31.1.2008
WASHINGTON - Multiple new efforts aimed at stemming suicides in the Army are falling short of their goal: The service anticipates another jump in the annual number of soldiers who killed themselves or tried to, including in the Iraq and Afghanistan war zones. (...)
Antidepressant prescribing and changes in antidepressant poisoning mortality and suicide in England, 1993–2004
Journal of Public Health Advance Access published online on January 31, 2008
(...) Conclusion In England, at a population level, there does not appear to be an association between antidepressant prescribing and antidepressant poisoning mortality or suicide. (...)
Suicidality and Antiepileptic Drugs
fda.gov 31.1.2008
(...) FDA ALERT [1/31/2008]: The FDA has analyzed reports of suicidality (suicidal behavior or ideation) from placebo-controlled clinical studies of eleven drugs used to treat epilepsy as well as psychiatric disorders, and other conditions. These drugs are commonly referred to as antiepileptic drugs (see the list below). In the FDA’s analysis, patients receiving antiepileptic drugs had approximately twice the risk of suicidal behavior or ideation (0.43%) compared to patients receiving placebo (0.22%). The increased risk of suicidal behavior and suicidal ideation was observed as early as one week after starting the antiepileptic drug and continued through 24 weeks. The results were generally consistent among the eleven drugs. (...)
FDA kräver självmordstest
lakemedelsvarlden.se 24.1.2008
Amerikanska läkemedelsverket, FDA, har börjat kräva att företag noggrant studerar patienters självmordsrisk i kliniska prövningar. Biverkningar från antidepressiva och bantningsläkemedlet Acomplia (rimonabant) har gjort att myndigheten satt fokus på självmordsrisken. (...)
Psychiatrist Told to Get Help; Says It's Because She Links SSRIs to Suicide
shortnews.com 28.1.2008
Australia: Dr. Yolande Lucire, a forensic psychiatrist with over three decades of experience in the field, has been reprimanded and ordered to get psychiatric help after a disagreement with the NSW Medical Board professional standards committee.
It stems from a medico-legal case in which her testimony led a judge to say doctors are responsible for violent crimes being committed by a "Ritalin Kids" generation. All Lucire could say was that it "did not relate to patient care."
Lucire suggests that some may question her ability to do her job because of her view that there is a connection between suicide and SSRI antidepressants. She cited a sudden stop in taking ADHD pills for a defendant in the assault and indecency case. (...)
Fler unga försöker ta sitt liv
svd.se 28.1.2008
Över 7 700 personer vårdades på sjukhus efter att ha försökt begå självmord eller på annat sätt avsiktligt skadat sig själva under 2006. Medan antalet skador av andra typer är stabilt eller minskar, fortsätter denna grupp att öka. Främst bland unga kvinnor, men även bland männen. (...)
Inom den allra vanligaste olycksorsaken dominerade däremot äldre. Det gällde fallolyckor, oftast halkning, snavning eller snubbling på platta marken. (...)
F.D.A. Requiring Suicide Studies in Drug Trials
nytimes.com 24.1.2008
After decades of inattention to the possible psychiatric side effects of experimental medicines, the Food and Drug Administration is now requiring drug makers to study closely whether patients become suicidal during clinical trials. (...)
Suicide Trends Among Youths and Young Adults Aged 10-24 Years—United States, 1990-2004
JAMA. 2008;299(3):283-284 (January 23)
MMWR. 2007;56:905-908
In 2004, suicide was the third leading cause of death among youths and young adults aged 10-24 years in the United States, accounting for 4,599 deaths. (...)
Forbidden Reality: Suicide Rate Soaring
arabnews.com 18.1.2008
MAKKAH, 18 January 2008 — Suicide is something that many religions and cultures look down upon. Islam clearly states that suicide is something forbidden. In spite of this, on account of a lack of correct Islamic upbringing, qualitatively speaking, attempted suicides are increasing in the Kingdom.
A number of Saudis told Arab News about people attempting to commit suicide. Some people try committing suicide to attract attention, others are simply mentally ill and a third group try committing suicide to bring a quick end to their social, psychological and financial problems. (...)
Selvmord hos pasienter behandlet i psykisk helsevern
Tidsskr Nor Lægeforen 2008; 128: 180-3 (17.1.2008)
(...) Resultater. 34 (19,3 %) av 176 selvmord var ikke rapportert i henhold til lovverket. Nesten ingen av virksomhetene syntes å bruke hendelsene i sitt kvalitetsforbedrende arbeid i den tiden studien varte. Det var store fylkesvise ulikheter, både i forhold til antall meldinger og i forhold til den tilsynsmessige behandlingen av sakene.
Fortolkning. Virksomhetene bør bli bedre til å overholde meldeplikten til Helsetilsynet i fylkene og til å bruke slike hendelser i sitt selvmordsforebyggende arbeid. (...)
Pengespill og suicidal atferd
Tidsskr Nor Lægeforen 2008; 128: 174-6 (17.1.2008)
Sammendrag
Bakgrunn. Spilleavhengighet kan ha alvorlige sosiale, familiemessige og økonomiske konsekvenser. Mulige sammenhenger mellom pengespill og suicidal atferd er lite studert. Det finnes ingen oppdatert litteraturgjennomgang på dette feltet, verken nasjonalt eller internasjonalt. (...)
What drives children to suicide?
telegraph.co.uk 14.1.2008
More than 4,000 under-14s tried to kill themselves in the UK last year. (…)
"Suicide is a complex problem," she says. "It can be impulsive, it may be related to depression, or even familiarity with suicide - the copycat effect. Some people think it is always about bullying but that is far too simplistic."
Parry says the NHS statistics, too, can be misleading. "Thousands of kids go through A&E after harming themselves, but not all are genuine suicide bids," she says. On the other hand, she thinks actual death rates are probably over-conservative.
To record a verdict of suicide, coroners have to be very sure of the facts, and are aware that families find the label distressing. For that reason, "coroners tend to be very sympathetic to families," says Parry. (…)
Ethnic Differences in Antidepressant Treatment Preceding Suicide in Sweden
Psychiatr Serv 59:116-a-117, January 2008 (American Psychiatric Association)
(...) We analyzed all suicides and deaths from undetermined intent among persons aged 18 to 84 in 2006 (N=1,255, or about 95% of all suicides). We examined use of prescriiption drugs in the 180 days before death. Persons born in Sweden, Denmark, and Norway, representing the Scandinavian countries, were compared with persons born in all other countries.
We first looked at antidepressant prescriiptions. Of the 776 Scandinavian men in the sample, 259 (32% filled a prescriiption for antidepressants in the 180 days before death. The corresponding figures were 176 of the 333 Scandinavian women in the sample (52%) (CI=46.7–57.5), 32 of the 102 foreign-born men (31%) (CI=21.6–39.5), and 21 of the 44 foreign-born women (43%) (CI=28.7–58.1). (...)
Smoking linked to suicide
iol.co.za 8.1.2008
Paris - "Smoking Kills" and "Smoking Causes Cancer" are the kind of health warnings that are familiar to millions of smokers.
How about this one: "Smoking Boosts the Risk of Suicide"?
The idea is sketched by German researchers, who say an in-depth study among young people in Bavaria found a clear and alarming link between smoking and the desire to kill oneself.
The investigation, published in the Journal of Affective Disorders, is based on data from a detailed psychology study launched in 1995 among 3 021 people aged 14-24 who lived in Munich. (...)
Suicide Labels May Cut Antidepressant Use
cbsnews.com 7.1.2008
Study: "Black Box" Warnings Reached Their Target Group Of Children, Teens (...)
From May 1, 2002 to June 19, 2003 -- before any warnings were put in place -- antidepressant use by youths rose by 36 percent.
On June 19, 2003, the FDA recommended that the antidepressant Paxil not be used to treat depressed children and teens. From then until October 2004 youth Paxil use dropped by 44 percent and youth use of all antidepressants dipped by about 1 percent per year.
In October 2004, the FDA established its black box warning about suicide risk in youths taking any antidepressant. That warning also noted that children and adults taking antidepressants should be watched closely for increased suicidal thinking and behavior, note the researchers.
From October 2004 until the end of 2005, youth antidepressant use dropped by about 10 percent per year.
The trends throughout the study were stronger in kids and teens than in adults. (...)
Research tracks Inuit modernization with suicide
cnews.canoe.ca 6.1.2008
New research comparing suicide trends in different Arctic regions offers fresh insight into the roots of a social dysfunction that snuffs out the lives of dozens of young Inuit every year - and suggests there is hope for a turnaround.
In a newly published article in the journal Aboriginal Issues, researcher Jack Hicks correlated suicide rates among Inuit people in Alaska, Nunavut and Greenland with the period when governments encouraged them to move off the land and into communities.
In all three countries, suicide rates began to rise among the first generation born in towns - the sons and daughters of those who had grown up on the land.
The trend began in north Alaska in the 1960s, in Greenland in the 1970s and in Nunavut in the 1980s. (...)
Report: Suicides do not increase during holidays
thestamfordtimes.com 20.12.2007
Instances of suicide do not increase during the holiday season, despite reports to the contrary, experts say.
Isolated incidents like last weekend's alleged suicide at the Green's Farm train station are not the norm, according to several published reports.
In the late 1800s, Enrico Morselli studied suicide in Europe and found that 17 out of 18 countries showed an increase in suicide rates during the spring and summer months. A 1995 study by Dr. Kay Redfield Jamison, author of Night Falls Fast: Understanding Suicide, substantiated this information.
Data from 1994 and 1996 research from the National Center for Health Statistics showed that November and December actually rank the lowest in the number of monthly suicides, while spring and fall months rank the highest. (...)
Suicide: holidays' darkest myth
latimes.com 17.12.2007
Contrary to past reports, depression and suicide rates actually fall during the holidays. (...)
Child suicide bids rise to more than 4,000
guardian.co.uk 16.12.2007
Children's Secretary calls for greater vigilance to spot those at risk (...)
There is a growing debate about whether mental health disorders are rising in the young, but there are signs that health professionals are seeing more young patients. The number of prescriiptions handed out to children under 16 for depression and mental health disorders has quadrupled in a decade. (...)
Dokumentar om selvmord:
Selvmordsbroen
nrk.no 13.12.2007
NRK2 viser lørdag kveld dokumentarfilmen "The Bridge" fra 2007 om selvmordene som begås fra Golden Gate Bridge i San Francisco. Denne gutten ble reddet. (...)
Fakta om selvmordene fra Golden Gate Bridge (...)
Poisonings, suicides fuel rise in U.S. injury deaths
uk.reuters.co 13.12.2007
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The death rate from injury in the United States is rising this decade after declining since the late 1970s, spurred by increases in accidental poisonings and suicides, health officials said on Thursday.
The injury death rate nationally increased 5.5 percent from 1999 to 2004 after a two-decade period of decline, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The rate counts deaths from such causes as unintentional injury, suicide, homicide, traffic deaths and even capital punishment. There were 167,184 such deaths in 2004.
Unintentional poisoning deaths -- there were 20,950 of them in 2004 -- accounted for more than half of the total increase in injury deaths during the period studied, the CDC said.
There was a 62.5-percent jump in the death rate from unintentional poisonings from 1999 to 2004, the CDC said.
CDC epidemiologist Dr. Len Paulozzi said a major part of this category includes drug overdoses involving prescriiption drugs as well as illicit drugs such as cocaine or heroin. (...)
CDC: Suicides Among Middle-Aged Spikes
forskning.no 13.12.2007
ATLANTA - The suicide rate among middle-aged Americans has reached its highest point in at least 25 years, a new government report said Thursday.
The rate rose by about 20 percent between 1999 and 2004 for U.S. residents ages 45 through 54 - far outpacing increases among younger adults, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported.
In 2004, there were 16.6 completed suicides per 100,000 people in that age group. That's the highest it's been since the CDC started tracking such rates, around 1980. The previous high was 16.5, in 1982.
Experts said they don't know why the suicide rates are rising so dramatically in that age group, but believe it is an unrecognized tragedy (...)
Høy selvmordsrate hos danske leger
Tidsskr Nor Lægeforen 2007; 127: 3189 (13.12.2007)
(...) Suicidraten varierte betydelig mellom ulike yrkesgrupper. Den var høyest hos leger (RR 2,7; 95 % KI 1,8 - 4,2) og lavest hos arkitekter og ingeniører (RR 0,4). Sammenlikningsgruppen var grunnskolelærere. Mesteparten av den økte raten i de ulike yrkesgruppene kunne forklares ved sosioøkonomiske karakteristika i disse yrkene. Unntaket var leger og sykepleiere. Mesteparten av den økte raten for disse to gruppene skyldtes hyppigere anvendelse av medikamentoverdoser. Generelt hadde yrket liten sammenheng med selvmordet hos mennesker med psykiske lidelser. Også her skilte imidlertid legene seg ut - de hadde økt risiko (RR 3,6). Nesten halvparten av dem som døde i suicid, hadde vært innlagt i psykiatrisk avdeling - mot bare 5 % av kontrollpersonene.
Resultatene samsvarer med norske funn. Forgiftning med medikamenter er vanligste selvmordsmåte for leger. Dette henger sikkert sammen med kunnskaper og tilgjengelighet. På den annen side har for eksempel militært personell lav suicidrate. De danske tallene viser også, som i Norge, at det hos politifolk ikke er økt suicidrate. (...)
Økt suicidrate hos kvinnelige leger
Tidsskr Nor Lægeforen 2007; 127: 3189 (13.12.2007)
Suicidraten hos kvinnelige leger er dobbelt så høy som hos andre kvinner. Det viser en studie fra USA.
En rekke studier gjennom mange år har vist at det hos leger er forhøyet selvmordsrate (1). Det gjelder også i Norge (2). Nå har amerikanske forskere analysert data fra 26 amerikanske delstater for perioden 1984 - 92 (3). De sammenliknet suicid hos leger, tannleger og personer i andre yrker. 203 legesuicid ble identifisert. (...)
Politiet slo alarm
aftenposten.no 7.12.2007
Den 31 år gamle moren som onsdag tok livet av sine fem sønner i alderen tre til ni år, forsøkte også å ta sitt eget liv. (...)
Der så de at kvinnen hadde kuttskader på begge armer, og hun ble tatt med til en kirurgisk avdeling hvor skadene ble behandlet. Deretter ble hun tatt med tilbake til det psykiatriske sykehuset hvor hun tidligere hadde fått behandling for sine psykiske forstyrrelser. (...)
PROPER VETTING
nypost.com 2.12.2007
December 2, 2007 -- I must point out misinterpretations and factual errors in Michael Fumento's “CBS's Bogus Vet-Suicide Stats" (PostOpinion, Nov. 19). (...)
Fumento's central assertion - that there is no credible evidence of an increased suicide rate among veterans - is based on selective data from a limited number of studies, some of which actually show an increase in military suicides.
Our reports concluded that suicide rates are alarmingly higher for vets than for nonvets.
After the reports aired, Congressional hearings were requested and, significantly, the VA itself stated that it is accelerating its own research into the issue. (...)
Phone calls 'cut jail suicides'
bbc.co.uk 14.11.2007
The first few nights in jail are the worst for new inmates
Prison reformers have called for more support for new inmates in order to prevent suicides.
The Prison Reform Trust says providing free phone calls to family or friends would reduce stress amongst prisoners during their first few nights in jail. (...)
- Norske menn begår æresdrap
vg.no 14.11.2007
Etnisk norske menn dreper sine koner for å gjenopprette æren de har tapt. (...)
FAKTA
• Ut fra Kripos årlige drapsstatistikk har VG undersøkt hvor mange kvinner som er drept av sine mannlige partnere siden 2000.
• I løpet av syv år er 72 kvinner drept av nåværende og tidligere kjærester, samboere eller ektemenn.
• Det tilsvarer i gjennomsnitt nesten et drap i måneden i hele perioden.
• Statistikken viser også at 2 av 3 gjerningsmenn er norske, og at kvinnene var i ferd med å bryte ut av forholdet i over halvparten av sakene.
• 63 mindreårige barn har mistet mammaen sin i disse sakene. (...)
Det mener professor i psykiatri Gustav Wik ved Universitetet i Bergen.
- Norske æresdrap er vanlig, hevder den anerkjente voldsforskeren. (...)
90 suicides a day spur Japan into action
timesonline.co.uk 12.11.2007
The Japanese Government is calling for a complete national rethink about attitudes to suicide in an effort to unravel centuries of social pressure and tradition. (...)
Suicide rate of women doctors in US is twice that of other working women
BMJ 2007;335:961 (10 November)
The proportion of female doctors who kill themselves is twice that of other working women, finds a study of self inflicted deaths in 26 US states over nine years.
No overall difference was shown between male doctors and men in other jobs in the proportion who committed suicide—although among men over the age of 45 years the proportion was higher in doctors, the study found (Occupational Medicine doi: 10.1093/occmed/kqm117). (...)
Parent Group Says Public Unaware that Antidepressant Induced Suicides are in the Tens of Thousands
prlog.org 7.11.2007
The national parent's rights organization, Ablechild, says that despite the FDA issuing a black box warning on antidepressants causing suicides, the mental health industry continues to downplay the risks of the drugs widely prescribed to millions.
(PRLog.Org) – Nov 05, 2007 – The national parent's rights organization, Ablechild, says that despite the U.S. FDA issuing a black box warning on antidepressants causing suicides, the mental health industry continues to downplay the real risks of the drugs widely prescribed to millions. In fact, based on information posted on the FDA's public drug reporting system, Medwatch, an estimated 63,000 suicides have been committed by people under the influence of antidepressants, documented to cause worsening depression and suicidal ideation. With 1.5 million children currently on antidepressants in the United States alone, Ablechild is deeply concerned about the number of children being prescribed the powerful and potentially lethal drugs. (...)
Study Of Depression And Suicide In Veterans
medicalnewstoday.com 6.11.2007
(...) Veterans with substance abuse issues, and those who had been hospitalized for psychiatric reasons in the year before their depression diagnosis, also had a higher suicide risk. Surprisingly, older veterans who had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder in addition to depression had a lower overall rate of suicide than those without a PTSD diagnosis, perhaps because they were more likely to receive care through Veterans Affairs PTSD programs. (...)
The researchers analyzed comprehensive data from 807,694 veterans of all ages diagnosed with depression and treated at any Veterans Affairs facility nationwide between 1999 and 2004. The data are from the VA's National Registry for Depression, developed and maintained by the Serious Mental Illness Treatment Research and Evaluation Center at the VA Ann Arbor's Health Services Research and Development Center of Excellence. (...)
Reference: American Journal of Public Health, Dec. 2007, Vol. 97, No. 12 (...)
Death Rates and Causes of Death After Bariatric Surgery for Pennsylvania Residents, 1995 to 2004
Arch Surg. 2007;142:923-928
Conclusions There was a substantial excess of deaths owing to suicide and coronary heart disease. Careful monitoring of bariatric surgical procedures and more intense follow-up could likely reduce the long-term case fatality rate in this patient population. (...)
After a suicide attempt, the journey of a lifetime begins
chron.com 5.11.2007
(...) Most of the 2004 increase was because of more girls committing suicide. (White males account for about three-fourths of suicides in people 19 and younger, even after the increase, but females attempt suicide more often; young Hispanic women have the highest rate of suicide attempts.) (...)
Suicide risk of young gays investigated
suntimes.com 5.11.2007
Gays and lesbians, especially youths, appear to be at higher risk for attempting suicide. Suicide experts from around the country will gather in Chicago this week to discuss this disturbing phenomenon in homosexuals, bisexuals and transgenders and what can be done about it. (...)
Suicide risk of young gays investigated
suntimes.com 5.11.2007
(...) The suicide foundation is a co-sponsor of the two-day meeting, beginning Thursday.
A New Zealand study found gay and lesbian youths are six times more likely than other youths to try suicide.
The government doesn't collect statistics on the sexual orientation of those who commit suicide. But a 1989 federal report estimated as many as 30 percent of youth suicides involve gays and lesbians. (...)
Små børn forsøger selvmord
berlingske.dk 2.11.2007
Hvert år forsøger et lille antal små børn at begå selvmord. Selvskadende adfærd breder sig fra teenagerne til de yngre børn, vurderer forsker.
Landets skadestuer registrerer år efter år stadig flere børn, der har forsøgt at begå selvmord. Selv blandt de yngste børn under fire år er der enkelte, der forsøger at tage deres eget liv.
Udviklingen undrer ikke Lillian Zøllner, der er leder af Center for Selvmordsforskning. (...)
Døden som læremester
Torleiv Ole Rognum
Tidsskr Nor Lægeforen 2007; 127: 2785 (1.11.2007)
«Mortui vivos docent» (de døde underviser de levende) står det på veggen i mange obduksjonssaler - men med fallende obduksjonsrate lærer vi mindre og mindre. I Norge obduseres 11 % av de døde. For å ha en valid dødsårsaksstatistikk må man opp mot 30 %. Vår statistikk er derfor ubrukelig som helseindikator. (...)
Battling Suicide: New Research for Depressed Veterans
ivanhoe.com 31.10.2007
ORLANDO, Fla. (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Young, white men have the highest suicide risk among depressed veterans, according to a new study. This is different from the general population, where the highest suicide rates are seen in men older than 75. (...)
U.S. Reports 2,002 Deaths in Arrests in 2003-5
nytimes.com 13.10.2007
(...) In all, the number of arrest-related deaths increased 13 percent over the course of the three years studied, to 703 in 2005 from 622 in 2003. The number of deaths caused by homicide and accidental injuries remained relatively steady, while intoxication deaths increased by 11 percent, to 90 from 81, and suicides by 63 percent, to 91 from 56. (...)
Depressed children 'committed suicide after taking Prozac'
dailymail.co.uk 12.10.2007
Prescribing anti-depressants to children is dangerous, a psychiatrist claimed yesterday.
Sami Timimi said SSRI-style drugs such as Prozac did not work and may have led to a 'small but tragic number of avoidable suicides'.
An estimated 40,000 children a year take SSRIs - selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. (...)
Kameror hindrar inte självmord
svd.se 10.10.2007
Kameror och telefoner skulle stoppa självmordshoppen från Alnöbron utanför Sundsvall. (...)
Suicide Data Prompt Call for Black-Box Review
Psychiatr News 2007;42(19):1 ( October 5)
While authors of a new study acknowledge that there is no proven connection between an increase in youth suicides and a decrease in antidepressant prescriiptions, they believe the coincidence of the phenomena is compelling. (...)
Though there is no proof of a causal association between rising suicide rates and declining antidepressant use, the study authors believe the coincidence of the two phenomena is compelling.
"Our study represents an analysis of a frightening natural experiment," Robert Gibbons, Ph.D., director of the Center for Health Statistics at the University of Illinois, told Psychiatric News. "The results are not encouraging. More data are needed, and we are working with CDC to analyze data on suicide for 2005 to verify this phenomenon. (...)
Experts say suicides stem from several issues
theleafchronicle.com 5.10.2007
Medical experts agree motivation that prompts suicide is a labyrinth of emotional issues.
“Suicide is a crisis of problem solving. It is multi-dimensional and doesn’t occur just because of one thing,” said Becky Stoll, director of Crisis Services for Centerstone.
Stoll who urged people who were present at Thursday’s city council meeting when local businessman “Bo” Ward shot himself to “take time to grieve.” (...)
Avis diktet opp selvmordsforsøk
na24.no 5.10.2007
- Venner og mamma tok kontakt med meg i morges og var urolige for at jeg hadde forsøkt å ta livet mitt. Og det stemmer jo ikke. Jeg er ingen selvmordskandidat, sier Calle Schulman, ifølge avisen.
Schulman tok raskt kontakt med avisens ledelse som la seg flat. (...)
Young Swedish women kill themselves more often
thelocal.se 4.10.2007
The suicide rate among young women in Sweden is at its highest level since the late 1970s. Researchers say the figures are a sign that young people's mental health is not taken seriously enough.
Preliminary statistics released on Thursday by the National Board of Health and Welfare show that the number of suicides among women aged 15-24 rose in both 2005 and 2006, Sveriges Radio reports. The figures had been relatively stable for most of the previous decade. (...)
Dual Approach Aids Depression Treatment
wsj.com 2.10.2007
(...) Therapy appears to be important in reducing suicidal thoughts. Such thoughts decreased over time on average for all study participants. However, while nearly 15% of those only taking Prozac -- Eli Lilly & Co.'s brand-name fluoxetine drug -- expressed serious suicidal thoughts or attempts, that number dropped to 8.4% when combined with therapy, much closer to the 6.3% of teens in therapy who weren't medicated. (...)
A major concern about the latest findings is whether the patients improved because of the treatment or just felt better naturally over time. The study didn't have an untreated control group to compare for the final six months.
The study was funded by the National Institute of Mental Health. Eli Lilly provided the medication and placebo but wasn't involved in any other aspect of the study, according to Dr. March, who has served as a consultant for several pharmaceutical companies but does no promotional work. (...)
Policy on the prevention of suicidal behaviour; one treatment for all may be an unrealistic expectation
R Soc Med 2007;100:461-464
(...) Suicide is a behaviour, not a diagnosis, and has diverse underlying pathologies. Interventions have differential effects in specific risk groups, which may include paradoxical increases in risk. For these reasons, policy makers may need to abandon the goal of one treatment for all and focus on the distinct subgroups of patients at risk when selecting, evaluating and implementing preventive interventions. (...)
Genes Tied to Bad Reactions to Antidepressant Drug
nytimes.com 28.9.2007
Variations in two genes may increase the likelihood that a person will report suicidal thoughts after taking an antidepressant, researchers reported yesterday. The finding could help doctors develop tests to predict which patients will do well on such medications and which will react badly. (...)
Many of the patients who reported a sudden urge to end their lives did not have either of the gene variations found to put people at high risk. (...)
Genes Might Predispose Antidepressant Users to Suicidal Thoughts
dentalplans.com 27.9.2007
Someday, DNA tests might spot those most at risk, experts say (...)
Study: Antidepressant Use Down, Suicides Up For Youth
usmedicine.com 24.9.2007
WASHINGTON-According to a new study, the decrease in the use of antidepressants in children and teens that resulted from federal warnings four years ago about the increased risk of suicidal behavior linked to the drugs, coincided with a sharp increase in youth suicides. (...)
The researchers postulated in their report that, were the FDA's conclusion that SSRIs caused increased suicide true, there would have been a decrease in the suicide rate following decreased use, rather than the opposite.
FDA has announced no plans to revisit the increased warnings. (...)
High rail suicides in London suburb
malaysiasun.com 23.9.2007
There has been a dramatic rise in the number of Asian women committing suicide on a single stretch of a railway track in west London.
The rail line in Southall has a high proportion of the total rail suicides in England and Wales.
Figures showed that 80 of the 240 rail suicides nationally last year were on that particular stretch of line, a large percentage of them being Asian women. (...)
Suicide Scares Show There's Money in Dosing Children for Pharma
by Martha Rosenberg
opednews.com 17.9.2007
Long before the New York Times reported in September that youth suicides were up 8% from 2003 to 2004 and experts indict black box warnings on antidepressants which the FDA imposed in 2004, pharma has been trying to plant a favorable antidepressants/suicide story.
Last year an article in the June PLoS Medicine by lead author Dr. Julio Licinio, a paid consultant to Eli Lilly, maker of the popular selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressant Prozac, found the US suicide rate "dropped steadily over 14 years as sales of the antidepressant [Prosac] rose." (...)
Dramatic Increase Found in Soldier Suicides
Psychiatr News 2007;42(18):9 (September 21) American Psychiatric Association
Better documentation reveals a sharp rise in suicide among U.S. Army soldiers and spurs efforts at prevention. (...)
Drept av toget - elever i krisepsykiatri
vg.no 20.9.2007
15-20 elever fra skolene i Time og Bryne ble tatt til krisepsykiatrisk behandling, etter at de ble øyenvitner til et selvmord på jernbanestasjonen i Bryne i går formiddag. (...)
Halvparten ville avslutte livet
aftenposten.no 14.9.2007
Blant tenåringer sliter mer enn dobbelt så mange homofile som heterofile med psykiske problemer. Sterke rusmidler er også langt mer utbredt. (...)
Rapporten "Vold mot lesbiske og homofile tenåringer" er basert på Ung i Oslo 2006, en undersøkelse blant 11 519 elever fra 9. og 10. klasse samt første trinn på videregående. (...)
Ikke overrasket
Funnene om psykiske problemer, overrasker ikke lederen i Norsk psykiatrisk forening, overlege og barne- og ungdomspsykiater Kirsten Djupesland, Sørlandet sykehus, Kristiansand.
- Vi vet at denne gruppen strever veldig. De er mye alene med tankene sine, og de vet i liten grad hvor de skal henvende seg for å få hjelp, sier hun. (...)
Finland no longer the suicide capital of the world
afp.google.com 14.9.2007
HELSINKI (AFP) — Finland has finally shed a bleak record as one of the world's suicide capitals after the number of people taking their own lives in this Nordic state has dropped by 40 percent in the past 15 years. (...)
Receptfria koffeintabletter används fortfarande vid självmord
sr.se 14.9.2007
Efter några uppmärksammade självmord receptbelades större förpackningar av koffeintabletter. Men nu visar en granskning att åtgärden inte fick någon större effekt på antalet självmord med koffeintabletter.
– Det är fortfarande så att vi varje år ser ett eller annat fall med koffeinförgiftningar med dödliga koffeinnivåer, säger Johan Ahlner, chef för den rättskemiska verksamheten vid Rättsmedicinalverket. (...)
Forebygging av selvmord
psykiskhelse.no 10.9.2007
Hvert år dør cirka 550 mennesker ved selvmord i Norge. Internasjonalt viser mange undersøkelser at omtrent halvparten av selvmordene skjer hos mennesker som ikke er registrert som pasienter i norsk helsevern. Vi vet lite om årsakene til disse selvmordene, noe som vanskeliggjør det selvmordsforebyggende arbeidet. (...)
«Broren min var ingen typisk selvmordskandidat»
aftenposten.no 10.9.2007
Kirkens SOS opplever stor pågang til sin krisetelefon for mennesker som tenker på selvmord. De siste to årene har antall henvendelser økt med 50 000. (...)
Dobbelt så mange selvmord i Finnmark
nrk.no 10.9.2007
- Foreldre må snakke med barna sine hvis de merker at de har det tøft. Dette kan hindre selvmord, sier psykolog Jens Jensenius. (...)
Suicide numbers under-counted: study
brisbanetimes.com.au 9.9.2007
Australia's suicide rate may be significantly higher than the statistics show, according to a new report which claims that flawed data is painting an incorrect picture of the nation's mental health status.
A study released Monday, on World Suicide Prevention Day, suggests there are problems with the official Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data that have led to serious under-counting of suicides nationally.
Researchers from the University of Sydney and colleagues in South Australia estimate that in Queensland in one year alone, the numbers fell short by 127 cases, due to errors in reporting. (...)
Suicide increase by teens is 'huge'
kentucky.com 7.9.2007
2003-04 SPIKE MIGHT STEM FROM FEWER USING ANTIDEPRESSANTS (...)
Following the flurry of warnings about the drugs, prescriiptions for them dropped by 22 percent, according to a report in this month's American Journal of Psychiatry by researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Licinio, who was not involved in the CDC study, speculated that parents may have shied away from giving the drugs to their young daughters because of safety concerns, leading to the sharp jump in suicides among girls. (...)
FDA Timeline on Issuing Warnings
Psychiatr News 2007;42(17:28 (September 7, 2007)
The following is a partial timeline of antidepressant-related meetings of and alerts issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the past four years. See "Impact of Label Warnings Felt Beyond Target Groups" for more information: (...)
Number of gun related suicides in Austria has fallen since tightening of gun controls
BMJ 2007;335:471 (8 September)
The number of homicides and suicides involving firearms has fallen dramatically in Austria since gun control laws were tightened in 1997, concludes a study in the British Journal of Psychiatry (2007;191:253-7). (...)
Teen Suicides Up Sharply for First Time in Years
healthfinder.gov 6.9.2007
Fewer antidepressant prescriiptions a factor in trend, expert says.
(SOURCES: Sept. 6, 2007, teleconference with: Ileana Arias, Ph.D., director, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control; Thomas Laughren, M.D., director, Division of Psychiatry Products, Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, U.S. Food and Drug Administration; Benjamin N. Shain, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor, psychiatry, Northwestern University, Evanston, Ill., and liaison, American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry; Sept. 7, 2007, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report )
THURSDAY, Sept. 6 (HealthDay News) -- Youth suicide rates rose 8 percent from 2003 to 2004, the largest annual increase in 15 years and a reversal of a decade of declines, a new government report shows. (...)
Når psykiatrien svikter
Einar Plyhn - Forlagssjef
aftenposten.no 1.9.2007
SELVMORD. Hvert år dør mer enn dobbelt så mange i selvmord som i trafikken. Hva har psykiatrien å tilby selvmordsnære mennesker? Overraskende lite. (...)
Mental health services ‘not doing enough’ to prevent railway suicides
timesonline.co.uk 28.8.2007
LONDON The number of people who died on the railways rose last year, amid claims that the processes in place for preventing suicides are not working.
The British Transport Police and Network Rail, the railway operator, said that mental health services were not taking enough action to treat the increasing number of people known to be a suicide risk.
Nearly 300 deaths were recorded on the mainline network and London Underground in 2006-07, about a fifth more than in previous years. The vast majority were thought to be suicides, transport officers said. A separate log of incidents by Network Rail recorded 219 suicides in 2006 – the highest number for more than a decade. These caused nearly 5,000 hours of delays. Officers said that some people were being turned away by mental health services, despite evidence of previous attempts to kill themselves on the railways. (...)
‘Undetermined’ cases cloud data on suicide
starbulletin.com 27.8.2007
Suicides appear to be decreasing in Hawaii, but the number of deaths ruled "undetermined" has increased, says a state health official. (...)
We need to accept 'right to suicide'
independent.ie 26.8.2007
No matter how difficult, we have to accept there are indeed lives that are not worth living, writes Emer O'Kelly (...)
Epilepsy and risk of suicide: a population-based case-control study
Lancet Neurol. 2007 Aug;6(8):693-8
(...) INTERPRETATION: Individuals with epilepsy have a higher risk of suicide, even if coexisting psychiatric disease, demographic differences, and socioeconomic factors are taken into account. Our study identifies people with newly diagnosed epilepsy as a vulnerable group that require special attention. (...)
Critics say Army putting spin on Iraq suicides to avoid questions
wistv.com 25.8.2007
DENVER (AP) - Several groups are raising questions about an Army report saying there's no link between long troop deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan and the army's highest suicide rate since the first Gulf War. (...)
Autopsy denials draw criticism
republicanherald.com 25.8.2007
To the Editor:
What is the job of a county coroner? Current literature states that one of the most crucial duties of a coroner is to make an order as to the cause of death when someone dies. This protects the public interest by ensuring that every person who dies is identified and that the cause of death is established. This also helps ensure that crimes do not go undetected. (...)
‘Depression in elderly population is under-diagnosed’
irishmedicalnews.ie (25.8.2007)
(...) He said suicide is universally under reported. The IAS conduced research in the mid-1990s in two counties in Ireland, where they looked at coroners files for the deaths in those two counties and made clinical judgements on which were suicides, against the official reported statistics.
“We found there could be an 11 to 30 per cent under reporting of suicide,” he maintained.
Not every death is newsworthy, according to Dr Connolly and suicide does get reported frequently. He said some six per cent of suicides are copycat. (...)
Dead trooper: ‘I can’t go on’
sundaygazettemail.com 25.8.2007
• State Police report describes Gonzales’ unhappiness before commiting suicide (...)
McCallister and Angel Gonzales, the trooper’s wife, told police that Gonzales had stopped taking Zoloft, which had been prescribed for him to fight depression, four days before he shot himself. (...)
Suicide remains shadowy subject
chinadaily.com 24.8.2007
According to official statistics, 280,000 people end their own lives every year in China, but experts believe the situation is far worse.
"The official figure is unrealistically low," said Michael Phillips, an associate professor of social medicine at Harvard Medical School and the head of research at Beijing Hui Long Guan Hospital, which specializes in psychological intervention and suicide prevention. (...)
Opposition demands release of report on inpatient suicides
ibnnews.org 21.8.2007
The New South Wales opposition has demanded the state government release a report into so-called sentinel events in inpatient mental health facilities. (...)
Prison will pay $150,000 to settle suicide lawsuit
citizensvoice.com 21.8.2007
WILKES-BARRE — The Luzerne County Correctional Facility Board voted Monday to pay $150,000 to settle a lawsuit about a 1995 suicide in the prison.
Luke Blumer, 19, hanged himself on Dec. 13, 1995, with bedsheets and shoelaces. The lawsuit alleged prison officials knew the Hazleton man was suicidal but still placed him in cell by himself without adequate supervision.
His wife, Nicole Blumer, and attorney, Joseph Rich, the administrator of his estate, sued the county.
The county is not accepting responsibility for the suicide by settling, Solicitor Jim Blaum said. The settlement was recommended by the county’s outside legal counsel, Blaum said. (...)
After Va. Tech: New Look at Campus Safety
msnbc.msn.com 20.8.2007
A tragedy showed the risk of underestimating mental-health problems. Now schools are intervening sooner. (...)
KrF: Nettside som middel mot selvmord
vg.no 17.8.2007
- Barn og unge har blitt oversett (...)
Ungdom får krisehjelp på e-post
vg.no 16.8.2007
Stadig flere ungdommer bruker e-post for å fortelle om selvmordstanker, depresjoner og vold. Mange synes det er lettere å skrive om problemer enn å bruke telefonen. (...)
Flere selvmord blant amerikanske soldater
vg.no 16.8.2007
Selvmordsraten blant soldater i USAs hær var i fjor den høyeste på 26 år, ifølge en ny rapport fra Pentagon. (...)
Begikk selvmord etter leketøystabbe
dn.no 13.8.2007
En kinesisk fabrikksjef tok sitt eget liv etter at Mattel tilbakekalte 967.000 leker. (...)
Ifølge nettstedet er det ikke uvanlig at kinesiske ledere tar livet sitt etter å ha blitt ydmyket i forretningssammenheng. (...)
Study was not a trial of antidepressants
Jon N Jureidini
BMJ 2007;335:221 (4 August)
Depression in adolescents
Goodyer et al tell us something about the role of cognitive behaviour therapy in adolescent depression but nothing about the use of drugs.1 The response rate is not strikingly different from what would be expected from placebo, and, as with other studies of combinations of antidepressant and cognitive behaviour therapy,2 we can draw no conclusions about the efficacy of antidepressants without a placebo arm. The authors justify its absence on the basis that a placebo arm would be unethical in such ill patients. That justification is questionable, given that at least 19 out of 20 studies of newer antidepressants in children and adolescents fail to show meaningful advantage of drug over placebo on their primary outcomes.3 Although Goodyer et al make few direct claims about the effectiveness of antidepressants, the implication that benefit is attributable to the drug will likely be used by others to support prescribing. (...)
Author's reply
Ian M Goodyer, professor of child and adolescent psychiatry
BMJ 2007;335:221 (4 August)
Depression in adolescents
Jureidini (previous letter) is correct in reminding readers that our trial is not a test of the efficacy of fluoxetine over psychological treatments. I do not agree with his assertion that it is acceptable to use a placebo arm in a pragmatic effectiveness trial of treatment for adolescent depression. (...)
Relationship between daily suicide counts and temperature in England and Wales
The British Journal of Psychiatry (2007)
(...) Results No spring or summer peak in suicide was found. Above 18 °C, each 1 °C increase in mean temperature was associated with a 3.8 and 5.0% rise in suicide and violent suicide respectively. Suicide increased by 46.9% during the 1995 heatwave, whereas no change was seen during the 2003 heat wave.
Conclusions There is increased risk of suicide during hot weather. (...)
Det umulige ordet
dagbladet.no 30.7.2007
Selvmord er et av vår tids siste tabu. Det må journalistene ta sin del av ansvaret for, skriver Unn Conradi Andersen. (...)
Treatment For Depressed Teens
psychcentral.com 23.7.2007
The study, published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) suggests that SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) treatment with CBT (cognitive behavioral therapy) will most probably not improve outcomes for adolescent patients with moderate to severe depression. (...)
(...) He added that monotherapy with an SSRI does not mean just writing a prescriiption. He noted that the participants in the study received a high level of clinical care, clinical reviews were frequent, and the monitoring of the benefit of treatment and adverse events was rigorous. (...)
(Anm: Rapid Responses to: (...) BMJ 2007; 335: 142 [Abstract] [Full text].)
'Rise' in suicides in poor areas
midlothianadvertiser.co.uk 14.7.2007
Suicide rates in young adults have increased dramatically in some of Scotland's most deprived areas, according to research. (...)
"Factors which are known to influence suicide, such as drug misuse, divorce and unemployment, are likely to be more common in such deprived areas," said Dr Daniel Exeter, the project researcher. (...)
Epileptics Have Three Times Greater Suicide Risk, Lancet Says
bloomberg.com 3.7.2007
July 3 (Bloomberg) -- Epileptics are three times more likely to commit suicide than people who don't have the disorder, and are especially susceptible in the six months after they're first diagnosed, a new study by Danish researchers shows.
Læger topper selvmordsstatistik
politiken.dk 3.7.2007
Der sker langt flere selvmord blandt læger og sygeplejersker end i andre faggrupper. (...)
Læger ligger højest i selvmordsstatistikken
Men læger og sygeplejersker skiller sig voldsomt ud fra det mønster. Særligt lægerne burde nyde godt af status og løn, men de er den faggruppe, der suverænt oftest begår selvmord. I forhold til den gruppe, der begår færrest selvmord - arkitekter og ingeniører - vælger læger seks gange så tit at tage deres eget liv. (...)
Psykiatriens makt
Av Bjørg Njaa, leder Menneskerettighetsutvalget, Landsforeningen for Pårørende innen Psykiatri
aftenposten.no 2.7.2007
DEFINISJONSMAKT. Takk til Einar Plyhn for modig kronikk og intervju i Aftenposten 23. juni om selvmord og sin situasjon som etterlatt. Og takk til lege Anne Godding for replikk 28. juni, hvor hun slår fast at det ikke er gjort nok, at ingen tar ansvar og at systemene beskytter hverandre. (...)
Cosmetic Breast Augmentation and Suicide
Am J Psychiatry 164:1006-1013 (July 2007)
(...) CONCLUSIONS: The higher-than-expected suicide rate among women with cosmetic breast implants warrants further research. In the absence of additional information on the relationship, women interested in breast augmentation who present with a history of psychopathology or those who are suspected by the plastic surgeon of having some form of psychopathology should undergo a mental health consultation before surgery. (...)
Mand begik selvmord i Gentofte Sø
politiken.dk 1.7.2007
En 59-årig mand svømmede ifølge et øjenvidne direkte ud mod midten af søen og kom ikke op igen. (...)
Suicide in Japan
Letter
Psychiatr Serv 58:1013, July 2007 - © 2007 American Psychiatric Association
To the Editor: Many previous studies have found mental disorders to be the most powerful risk factor for suicide in all age groups, accounting for 80% to 90% of all completed suicides (1,2,3). (...)
Japan Says Suicidal Cases Increase Among Takers of Glaxo Drug
bloomberg.com 28.6.2007
June 28 (Bloomberg) -- The number of patients who committed suicide or planned suicide after taking GlaxoSmithKline Plc's antidepressant Paxil rose to 39 last year, Japan's Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said. (...)
"We have been telling doctors to be cautious with the amounts they prescribe,'' Yuko Fuke, a spokeswoman at Glaxo's Japan unit in Tokyo, said by telephone. "Package inserts warn doctors to be careful. We have been also reporting the risks of the drug to the ministry.'' (...)
Suicide rate for those taking anti-depressant agent Paxil rises sharply
mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp 28.6.2007
A growing number of depression patients have committed suicide as a suspected result of side-effects from the anti-depressant agent Paxil over the past few years, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry said. (...)
Suicide deaths up despite strong push for local, state prevention
news-journalonline.com 25.6.2007
It's the kind of statistic no community wants to hear.
Volusia County posted its highest-ever death toll from suicide in 2006: 108 people took their own lives. The number of self-inflicted deaths in Flagler County doubled from 6 to 12 in one year.
This is discouraging news in a community that's worked hard to save lives. In recent years, local leaders held several suicide-prevention summits, and dozens of officials, including law enforcement and hospital personnel, were trained in warning signs and intervention techniques. A successful mental-health hotline based in Volusia County received 20,000 calls from across Florida last year, and a suicide-prevention resource center is planned for west Volusia County. (...)
Suicide rate low in Muslim world,
Kashmir an exception
greaterkashmir.com 23.6.2007
Srinagar, June 23: The World Health Organization (WHO) statistics for 2005 shows the rate of suicides in Muslim world is 0.1 to 0.2 per 100,000. The low rate of suicides is attributed to strong religious beliefs in these societies. But, in Kashmir, a Muslim state, the rate is 15-20 per 100,000 per year. (...)
Selvmord følges ikke godt opp
aftenposten.no 23.6.2007
Mange etterlatte etter selvmord føler at hjelpeapparatet svikter dem når de trenger hjelp. Det fikk Einar Plyhn merke. Han mistet hele familien. (...)
ARMY SEES SPIKE IN ACCIDENTS, SUICIDES
UPI.COM 21.6.2007
WASHINGTON, June 21 (UPI) -- The acting secretary of the U.S. Army says he is seeing a troubling spike in key morale indicators among soldiers -- suicide, divorces and accidents.
Acting Secretary Pete Geren told the Senate Armed Services Committee Tuesday at his nomination hearing to become the civilian head of the Army that he discusses suicides and fatal accidents at a weekly meeting with senior military leaders. (...)
Child abuse linked to indigenous suicide rate
abc.net.au 18.6.2007
A Northern Territory researcher says child abuse can be linked to spiralling suicide rates in indigenous communities. (...)
How suicide is ripping Aboriginal lives apart
theage.com.au 18.6.2007
The 'Father of Reconciliation', Patrick Dodson. "This is a crisis in our society that really needs to be worked through and not through bully-boy tactics." (...)
FEATURE - Poverty drives migrant Indian workers in Bahrain to suicide reuters.com 17.6.2007
(...) "There have been many suicides," Rajgopalan Raghunathan, second secretary at the Indian Embassy, told a recent workshop to train Indian counsellors. "Some of these deaths could have been avoided if there was a way they could air their grievances."
Raghunathan said the number of suicides among deaths recorded by the embassy was "quite large", but gave no figure. (...)
EDITORIAL: Preventing suicides
asahi.com 14.6.2007
The economy is beginning to look up, but the number of suicides is showing no signs of decline. According to the National Police Agency, 32,155 people killed themselves in Japan last year, outnumbering traffic accident fatalities by five times. It was the ninth consecutive year that more than 30,000 people took their own lives. (...)
Suicide prevention an urgent need in third world
thejakartapost.com 13.6.2007
Felix Lengkong, Jakarta
(...) Recently the World Health Organization's (WHO) South East Asia regional office reported that the global suicide rate had risen from 10 suicides per 100,000 people in the 1950s to 18 suicides per 100,000 people in 1995. As many as 73 percent of suicides in the world occur in developing countries. (...)
USA: Høy risiko for selvmord blant veteraner
vg.no 12.6.2007
Sannsynligheten for at amerikanske krigsveteraner tar selvmord er dobbelt så høy som i resten av befolkningen, ifølge ny rapport. (...)
FDA links obesity drug to suicides
nj.com 12.7.2007
Sanofi-Aventis studies reveal psychiatric events
WASHINGTON -- Drug regulators said yesterday Sanofi-Aventis' obesity treatment Acomplia may trigger suicidal behavior and other psychological side effects in some patients. It was the latest setback for an experimental medicine that has had a troubled regulatory history. (...)
Japanese gov't targets 20% reduction in suicides
news.xinhuanet.com 11.6.2007
BEIJING, June 11 (Xinhuanet) -- Police figures reveal more than 30,000 Japanese have committed suicide each year for the past nine years, prompting the government to plan a wide range of steps to deal with social issues such as an aging society, unemployment and overwork, all aimed at bringing the nation's suicide rate down by 2016. (...)
The guidelines call for the first time for separate policies for different age groups, with particular attention being paid to young people and the elderly, whose suicide rates are rising. Policies to deal with unemployment and financial problems, a large cause of death among middle-aged men, are also urged. (...)
FDA Protects SSRI Makers With Misleading Warning
By Evelyn Pringle
coop.co.nz 24.5.2007
Opinion: Evelyn Pringle FDA Protects SSRI Makers With Misleading Suicide Warning
On May 2, 2007, the FDA announced its most misleading warnings to date about selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor antidepressants when it said the drug makers would revise the current black box warning of an increased risk of suicidality in children and adolescents to include adults, but only young adults ages 18 to 24. Apparently at the ripe old age of 25 the increased risk no longer exists. (...)
Japan's birth rate rises for 1st rise in 6 years; suicides fall
iht.com 6.6.2007
TOKYO: Japan's birth rate rose last year for the first time in six years in 2006, while the number of suicides fell below the 30,000-case mark for the first time in four, the government said Wednesday. (...)
Genetic Testing for Suicidal Tendencies
technologyreview.com 5.6.2007
Scientists believe that genetic testing may identify those susceptible to serious side effects from antidepressants. (...)
In a study of 1,879 participants, published today in Archives of General Psychiatry, Roy Perlis and his team at Harvard found a significant link between a variation in the gene CREB1 and suicidal thinking in men, but not in women. This gene has been linked to mood regulation in animal models of disease, and people who have committed suicide show altered regulation of this gene in their brains. The scientists don't yet know the role that the gene might play in suicidal thinking. (...)
Genes Hold Clue to Antidepressant-Related Suicidal Thoughts
ivanhoe.com 5.6.2007
(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- If new research is correct, doctors may soon have a way to tell which men will have thoughts of suicide when they begin treatment with antidepressants.
Investigators studied more than 1,400 people taking part in a large clinical trial on depression treatments, looking for specific genetic mutations linked to antidepressant effects and suicide.
None of the people at the beginning of the study reported having suicidal thoughts or behaviors. After up to 12 weeks of treatment with an antidepressant, 123 reported such thoughts, including 54 men. When the investigators compared the genetic mutations with the occurrence of suicidal thoughts, they found men -- but not women -- who reported these thoughts were significantly more likely to have one of the mutations.
The authors believe this finding could help doctors determine which men are at highest risk for suicidal thoughts related to antidepressants. "If replicated, this finding would suggest that pharmacogenetic testing could facilitate the identification of the small subset of individuals at greater risk during short-term antidepressant treatment," conclude the researchers. (...)
SSRI-Suicide Link in Men May Have Genetic Basis
medpagetoday.com 4.6.2007
(...) "Regardless of specificity, the associations noted between symptoms and suicidal thinking have potential clinical implications in identifying a higher-risk subgroup among depressed patients; interventions that benefit most patients may still be associated with worsening in a small subset," the authors wrote in the June issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry. (...)
Senate hearing urges personalized prescriiptions
dailyutahchronicle.com 4.6.2007
The phrase "Take two aspirin and call me in the morning" may soon be a thing of the past, according to Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Andrew C. von Eschenbach. (...)
Also contributing to the decline, said David Jones, senior director of early translational research at the Huntsman Cancer Institute, is the "blockbuster mentality" of pharmaceutical companies that if a medication is not a cure-all wonder drug, it's not worth the time and money.
By developing drugs to work well with individual DNA types rather than the public as a whole, the FDA hopes to fight the blockbuster mentality.
"We can create a system of health care that is predictive, preemptive and much more personalized," von Eschenbach said.
Sen. Bennett described the drug Vioxx as the "poster child" for the new initiative. (...)
The FDA Pediatric Advisories and Changes in Diagnosis and Treatment of Pediatric Depression
Editorials
Am J Psychiatry 164:843-846 (June 2007) - © 2007 American Psychiatric Association
Pediatric depression is a national health problem that clinical, research, and public health activities aim to prevent and treat. Naturalistic longitudinal studies have shown correlations between prepubertal depression and high rates of suicidal ideation and behavior, and prepubertal depression has been found to be a predictor of both suicide attempts in adolescence and suicide in young adulthood (1–3). (...)
EXPLAINER: ANSWERS TO YOUR QUESTIONS ABOUT THE NEWS.
Why Are There So Many Suicides in Japan? IT'S THE ECONOMY, STUPID. AND THE HEALTH-CARE SYSTEM. AND THE RELIGIOUS BELIEFS. AND THE …
slate.com 31.5.2007
(...) Antidepressant SSRIs didn't become widely available until 1993, and as of 2003 you could get Zoloft and Prozac only by ordering them through the mail. (Japan has been slow to introduce other drugs, too: The birth control pill, which was legalized in 1999, remains unpopular.) In 2006, the government began introducing reforms that would create suicide hot lines and make counselors available in schools and at work. (...)
Kids on Meds -- Trouble Ahead
sciam.com 30.5.2007 (Scientific American MIND)
Antidepressants, designed for adults, may be altering the brains of kids who take them
On February 7, 2004, the body of Traci Johnson, a 19-year-old college student, was found hanging by a scarf from a shower rod in a drug company laboratory. Johnson had no apparent signs of depression, and the reason she killed herself was a mystery. What made her death different from other such tragedies is that she was a subject in a trial of an experimental antidepressant. The company, Eli Lilly, noted that four other patients given the drug in earlier trials had also committed suicide. Not long afterward, prompted by Johnson's death and others, the Food and Drug Administration warned doctors that antidepressants might increase the risk of suicide in children and adolescents. (...)
Now, however, research suggests that suicide is only one of the potential risks. Studies have found that Prozac-like drugs might interfere with normal patterns of growth in children's still developing brains. Although the research is not conclusive, it is possible that kids on antidepressants are trading one psychiatric diagnosis for another. Children who take these drugs—in some instances starting in the preschool years—could find short-term relief and then grow up into edgy, anxious, dysfunctional adults. (...)
Drop in Prison Suicide Rates
thereporter.com 28.5.2007
Reducing fatal trend in cells a rare success for state
Inmates are moved through the administrative segregation unit at California State Prison, Sacramento, in Folsom. (Associated Press) FOLSOM - Every 30 minutes, day and night, guards walk the tiers of the isolation unit at California State Prison, Sacramento, checking inmates to make sure they don't kill themselves. (...)
Japan sets suicide reduction as an urgent task
iht.com 28.5.2007
TOKYO: The hanging death of Japan's farm minister this week grimly illustrated the country's stubbornly high suicide rate — and the government's struggle to discourage large numbers of Japanese from killing themselves. (...)
With that act, Matsuoka became one of the more than 30,000 Japanese who kill themselves every year — the second-highest suicide rate in the industrialized world. Japan's suicide rate per 100,000 people stood at 25.5 in 2003, compared with Russia's 38.7, according to World Health Organization figures. (...)
Japanese agriculture minister left seven suicide notes – police
en.rian.ru 28.5.2007
TOKYO, May 28 (RIA Novosti) - The Japanese Cabinet minister who died Monday after hanging himself apparently over a series of party funding scandals had written six farewell notes to political associates, including to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, and another one with no designated addressee, Japan's National Police Agency said. (...)
Japan minister suicides
news.com.au 28.5.2007
JAPAN'S farm minister hanged himself just hours before he was to face questioning in parliament over a political scandal, officials said.
Toshikatsu Matsuoka, 62, was found in his apartment unconscious and rushed to a hospital, where he was declared dead hours later, a Tokyo Metropolitan Police official said.
Matsuoka had faced heavy criticism over a scandal involving suspicious bookkeeping practices in his offices, and he had been scheduled to appear before a parliamentary committee this afternoon for further questioning. (...)
Suicide rate startles experts (Selvmordsrate forskrekker selvmordsforskere)
courierpress.com 28.5.2007
22 people die in Vanderburgh County this year
When 10-year-old De-Twain Barnett hanged himself earlier this month, news of his death stunned mental health officials around the state.
How could someone so young take his own life? What part of society failed this child? (...)
Prison intervention appears to slow suicide numbers
ocregister.com 27.5.2007
Guard checks prompted by judge's finding of disproportionate suicides in isolation cells. (...)
Last year, a record 43 inmates killed themselves in California prisons. California's rate of 25.5 deaths per 100,000 inmates is nearly double the nationwide prison suicide rate of 14 per 100,000, according to the federal Bureau of Justice Statistics. Nearly half those deaths were in California's isolation units. (...)
Here are the annual numbers of inmate suicides in California prisons over the past decade and the number of suicides in administrative segregation units.
2006:43, 18 - 2005:37, 13 - 2004:26, 18 - 2003:37, 18 - 2002:21, 5 - 2001: 27, 10 - 2000:14, 7 - 1999:24, 7 - 1998:21, 5 - 1997: 18, 6 - 1996:19, 3
Source: The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (...)
Designs unveiled for Golden Gate Bridge anti-suicide barrier
examiner.com 25.5.2007
Designs unveiled for Golden Gate Bridge anti-suicide barrier (...)
Preventing suicides
EDITORIAL
japantimes.co.jp 23.5.2007
Every year in Japan some 30,000 people kill themselves. Last year, a basic law to counter suicide went into effect, declaring that suicide prevention is the responsibility of both the central and local governments. (...)
Suicides top list of Lake jail's problems
post-trib.com 20.5.2007
CROWN POINT -- Lake County Jail inmates have killed themselves at an alarming rate in recent years.
And a federal report on how the jail can better prevent prisoner suicides was apparently never shown to the man in charge of deciding if new arrivals pose a risk to themselves. (...)
Poverty blamed for rash of suicides
gulf-times.com 19.5.2007
JAKARTA: At least 30 people in Indonesia’s central Java province have committed suicide this year, many because of poverty and unemployment, a newspaper reported yesterday.
Since New Year’s Day, 13 suicides were reported in central Java’s Banyumas district and another 10 in three neighbouring districts, The Jakarta Post reported. (...)
Work-related suicides up 52 percent in Japan
iht.com 17.5.2007
TOKYO: The number of Japanese who killed themselves because of work jumped 52 percent last year, while work-induced mental illness also hit a record high, a health official said Thursday.
Compensation paid to the families of workers who committed suicide due to work-related stress was paid out in a record 65 cases in 2006, compared to 42 the previous year, according to Health Ministry official Junichiro Kurashige. (...)
Campaigners call for inquiry into drug-suicide link
huntspost.co.uk 16.5.2007
AN independent inquiry into the link between suicide and young people on anti-depressants has been called for - as the Government is yet again being challenged on the issue.
Campaigners in the UK want to know why it has taken three years to investigate one of the world's largest drug companies over allegations that they suppressed information about the suicide risk in young people.
Since 2003, GlaxoSmithKline has been under investigation by the body that regulates drugs in Britain, the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency, MHRA.
The same year, the anti-depressant, Seroxat, manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline, was banned for under-18s because of evidence that it could cause suicide and self-harming in that age group. GlaxoSmithKline is being investigated because of allegations that it had this evidence in 1997 and withheld it. (...)
Paul Scott: Antidepressants need more scrutiny
startribune.com 16.5.2007
Some studies are at odds with the Star Tribune's enthusiasm for this group of drugs.
Recently, a Star Tribune editorial referred to those concerned about antidepressant-related suicide as "naysayers" ("Antidepressants: Benefits outweigh risk," May 10). The writers of the piece might not have been so glib were they familiar with stories like that of Candace Downing, a luminous, non-depressed Maryland 12-year-old who had been given the drug Zoloft for test anxiety and who in January 2004 hanged herself from the valence over her bed. (...)
Pills link to fall in suicides
thestandard.com 16.5.2007
Increased antidepressant use was accompanied by falls in suicide rates in 26 countries, the first international study of the issue has found.
Using an indirect statistical modeling technique, the researchers estimated that each increase of 200,000 pills could avert one suicide. If generic antidepressants cost around 10 US cents (78 HK cents) a pill, then averting one suicide would cost around US$20,000.
That would be a bargain, wrote Jens Ludwig, Dave Marcotte and Karen Norberg who work, respectively, at Georgetown University, the University of Maryland and the Washington University School of Medicine.
The study is the latest salvo in a continuing controversy over the use of Prozac and similar drugs. The Food and Drug Administration required black- box warnings on the pills after clinical trials found an increase in suicidal behavior among young people taking them.
But a number of physicians say the antidepressants have kept many people from committing suicide.
The study, published as a working paper by the US National Bureau of Economic Research, found that countries that were quicker to adopt antidepressants showed a greater decline in suicide rates. THE WASHINGTON POST. (...)
Suicidal proteins
spectroscopynow.com 15.5.2007
One of the foremost causes of death is suicide, which accounted for around 32,400 deaths in the US alone in 2004. Here, the death rates have been fairly constant over the last 10 years, averaging 10-12 people per 100,000 of the population, making it the 11th highest cause of death overall. About four times as many males kill themselves than females but far more female attempts are reported. However, more worryingly, suicide is the third highest cause of death for 15-24 year-olds.
The major instruments of suicide in the US are firearms, hanging, poisons and drugs. It is difficult to imagine what is going through people's minds when they reach the state of contemplating suicide but they often feel a sense of utter hopelessness with no alternative solution to their problems. Drug and substance abuse, depression, financial crises, loss of a loved one and long-term illness all place people at higher risk but professional health workers recognise that there are many factors at play. (...)
Although several genes have been implicated, it is believed that other genes remain to be identified. Rather than looking directly for these, researchers in Germany have decided to investigate which gene products, that is proteins, are involved.
Brigitta Bondy and co-workers from the Ludwig Maximilians University in Munich and the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry in Martinsried argued that changes in the proteome, a dynamic, flexible system, are likely to be more detectable than changes in the relatively stable genome. So they applied proteomics techniques to analyse the proteins expressed in the post-mortem brain tissue of 17 suicide victims and nine control patients. (...)
'HAPPY PILLS' SLASH SUICIDES
nypost.com 15.5.2007
May 15, 2007 -- Increased antidepressant use was accompanied by declines in suicide rates in 26 countries, the first international study of the issue has found.
For every 200,000 pills used, about one suicide was averted, according to the working paper by the National Bureau of Economic Research.
The study is the latest salvo in an ongoing medical debate over whether Prozac and similar drugs increase or reduce suicidal behavior. (...)
Depression is the real killer, not antidepressants, say commentators
BMJ 2007;334:974 (12 May)
(...) The primary analyses were restricted to participants in those trials that specifically concerned psychiatric disorders, write the authors. Among these were eight deaths from suicide: five among the 39 729 participants assigned to the drug under investigation, two among the 27 164 taking a placebo, and one among the 10 489 taking an active comparator.
In addition, 501 participants had suicidal feelings or thoughts or made unsuccessful attempts at suicide: 243 of those receiving the drug under investigation, 194 in the placebo group, and 64 in an active comparator group.
When the analysis combined all adult age groups, no increased risk of suicidal behaviour or ideation was found. However, in age stratified analyses, the risk in patients aged 18-24 years was higher, albeit not significantly (odds ratio 1.6 (95% confidence interval 0.9 to 2.7)).
The committee gave two reasons for recommending expansion of the black box warning to include the risk to the 18-24 years age group. Firstly, the threshold for threats to safety is generally lower than that for efficiency, and the data did not provide strong evidence for an absence of risk.
But secondly—and more importantly—the trend across the age groups towards an association between antidepressant use and suicidality was convincing, particularly when taken together with earlier analyses of data on adolescents from randomised controlled trials. Furthermore, the data set was larger than any previously assembled to study suicidality or interventions for a psychiatric disorder, and the results of independent analyses by two groups of FDA reviewers, which used different statistical methods, were virtually identical. (...)
Suicide risk said higher for veterans
nwsource.com 10.5.2007
WASHINGTON -- Veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan are at increased risk of suicide because not all Veterans Affairs health clinics have 24-hour mental care available, an internal review says. (...)
Suicide tries frequent, inquest told; Sudbury jail site of six suicides during past decade
thesudburystar.com 8.5.2007
(...) Psychiatrist Dr. Ron Stewart, of Thunder Bay, an expert in suicide management, told the jury of three males and two females that assessing which inmates are potential suicide risks is extremely difficult.
Barkman took his life while in the segregation unit in D area about 11 p.m. Dec. 30, by fashioning a ligature from the piping of towels. Using that, and a pillowcase, he hung himself from the top bunk in his cell.
"There is nothing that we know that can reduce suicides. No interventions we know of that reduces suicides," said Stewart. (...)
More Than 10% of U.S. Adults Develop Drug Problems
healthfinder.gov 7.5.2007
Many of these abuses are associated with psychiatric disorders, study finds. (...)
Prescriiption drug abuse up sharply in the USA
The Lancet 2007; 369:1505-1506
Government officials are warning that the abuse of pharmaceutical drugs is becoming a major public-health problem. Although abuse of prescriiption drugs has been increasing in the USA for several years, the latest statistics show a recent sharp rise. Michael McCarthy reports.
Abuse of pharmaceutical drugs is increasing in the USA, according to the latest government statistics, which show that visits to US emergency departments related to non-medical use of pharmaceuticals, including prescriiption drugs and over-the-counter products, jumped 21% from 2004 to 2005. (...)
Anti-depressants could backfire for teens
khou.com 7.5.2007
By the time Kayla Beltran turned 18, family members say she was dealing with emotions not uncommon among those in her age group. (...)
But when the highs became higher and the lows lower, a doctor placed Kayla on Lexapro.
The number one prescribed anti depressant of it’s kind.
Six weeks later…six months after he 18th birthday Kayla hung herself.
Documenting her final act on earth, with her cell phone camera. (...)
Tort reform essentially limiting your ability to sue a drug maker because of inadequate warnings.
Although it was sold as a way of weeding out frivolous lawsuits.
“It’s not about kicking out lawsuits that don’t belong in the system. It’s about protecting the pocketbooks of corporations as is evidenced by this case. You can’t get more serious than death,” said attorney Denman Heard. (...)
EDs Seeing More Patients Who Abuse Medications
Psychiatr News 2007;42(9):4 (May 4)
© 2007 American Psychiatric Association
(...) Drug Abuse Warning Net works (DAWN) researchers gathered data from 355 emergency rooms across the United States by reviewing medical records related to recent drug use. To be included in the analysis, drugs needed only to be implicated in the visit; they did not have to be the cause of the visit.
All data were estimated using weighted calculations based on actual visits to emergency departments. (...)
When researchers looked at data for drug-related suicide attempts, they found that there were 132,582 emergency room visits for such attempts in 2005, and in nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of them multiple drugs had been used. (...)
More than half of the visits for drug-related suicide attempts involved psychotherapeutic agents, with the most common types being benzodiazepines and antidepressants. About 45 percent of the suicide attempts involved central nervous system agents such as prescriiption and over-the-counter analgesic medications. (...)
Expert: FDA move on antidepressants justified
wthr.com 3.5.2007
Washington - Eli Lilly and other antidepressant drug-makers are ordered to put new warnings on the nation's most widely prescribed drugs. The Food and Drug Administration wants labels rewritten to say the use of these drugs causes suicidal behavior in young adults. (...)
Food and Drug Administration antidepressant information (...)
FDA Seeks Antidepressant Warning
myfoxtwincities.com 2.5.2007
WASHINGTON -- Young adults face an increased risk of suicidal thoughts and behavior when they first begin taking antidepressants and should be warned about the danger, federal health officials said Wednesday.
The Food and Drug Administration asked makers of the drugs to expand its warning labels to include adults age 18-24. The labels already include similar warnings for children and adolescents. (...)
Will suicidal Swiss stick to their guns?
washingtonpost.com 1.5.2007
ZURICH (Reuters) - Switzerland is one of the world's richest and most tranquil countries, but it also has more suicides than most. This may show that money doesn't buy happiness, but some Swiss also blame the guns. (...)
"Compared to countries abroad, a large number of suicides involve firearms ... And that's of course because it is easier to get hold of guns here," said Boris Banga, a socialist member of parliament who wants stricter laws. (...)
EUROPE'S TOP 10
The Swiss suicide rate stands at 19.1 suicides per 100,000 inhabitants, a 2005 study by the country's Federal Health Office said, well above the World Health Organization's global average of 14.5 and of 14.1 in the European Union.
That figure may be inflated by assisted suicides -- about 10 percent of suicides are through the suicide-assistance groups for which the country has built up some fame. (...)
A quarter of suicides involved firearms in the 1969-2000 period, according to the Federal Health Office study. (...)
`More suicides at Guantanamo if lawyers visits are limited`
zeenews.com 29.4.2007
San Juan (Puerto Rico), April 29: Lawyers envision more suicides and despair at Guantanamo bay if the US Justice Department succeeds in its bid to severely restrict access by defence attorneys to the isolated military base.
The Justice Department this month asked the US Court of Appeals for the district of Columbia circuit to limit to three the number of lawyer visits allowed after an initial face-to-face meeting, to tighten censorship of mail from attorneys and give the military more control over what they can discuss with detainees. (...)
Role of antidepressants in killings needs review
modbee.com 29.4.2007
The murderous rampage that left 33 people dead at Virginia Tech has stirred countless emotions: sadness and anger, fear and hatred, grief and disgust. (...)
Japan proposes to cut suicide rate by 20 pct
alertnet.org 27.4.2007
TOKYO, April 27 (Reuters) - Japan's government on Friday pledged to cut the country's suicide rate -- one of the highest among industrialised nations -- by 20 percent in 10 years in a proposal that suggested more support for the poor and depressed. (...)
No other option? The rise in suicides in Yemen
yobserver.com 24.4.2007
(...) Suicides occur in Yemen for a number of reasons, but often the cause is never fully known, because many people hesitate to report such cases out of shame and fear of scandal. However, sources indicate that the incidence of suicide has been on the rise in the past ten years, and most people attribute this to intolerable living conditions brought on by the overwhelming poverty found throughout the country. (...)
Drugs, suicide and aging populations plague American Indians
sltrib.com 24.4.2007
The problems are hitting opposite ends of the population spectrum, said Charles Johnson, an assistant secretary with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, said during a tribal consultation meeting in Salt Lake City.
As tribe members live longer, problems such as diabetes, cancer and heart disease are increasing. Younger Indians are encountering problems with methamphetamine, obesity and suicide. (...)
L.A. County child homicides, suicides up in '05
latimes.com 19.4.2007
Thirty-three children were killed and 15 died at their own hands. But the numbers are significantly lower than in the early 1990s. (...)
Murder-suicide perpetrators usually male, study finds
scrippsnews.com 18.4.2007
With everyone searching for answers to the Virginia Tech massacre, two irrefutable factors are being glossed over, according to a violence think tank.
In mass-murder suicides, the killer is almost always male and he almost always uses a gun.
"These tragedies are the inevitable result of the ease with which the firepower necessary to slaughter dozens of innocents can be obtained.
"We allow virtually anyone the means to turn almost any venue into a battlefield," says Josh Sugarmann, executive director of the Washington-based Violence Policy Center. (...)
Innbilte krenkelser kan utløse drap
forskning.no 17.4.2007
Fattigdom
(...) Det er også en tendens til at de unge gjerningsmennene kommer fra familier preget av fattigdom eller andre typer problemer.
Bjørnebekk understreker at det ikke er hvem som helst som kan finne på å begå massedrap når de føler seg krenket.
Vanligvis dreier det seg om folk med en spesiell personlighetstype i en situasjon preget av hat og krise. (...)
Prevention tactics push suicide rate to record low
independent.co.uk 12.4.2007
Suicides in Britain have fallen to an all time low - but it has little to do with increasing happiness. Killing yourself is getting harder, and the result is a big saving in lives.
A total of 4,331 people committed suicide in 2005, bringing the three-year rolling average to 8.5 deaths per 100,000, the lowest level since the Second World War.
The death rate has fallen by 7.6 per cent since the mid 1990s, largely because it has become more difficult for people to end it all. But the progress report, published by the National Institute for Mental Health yesterday, says the rate is not falling fast enough to meet the government target of a 20 per cent reduction by 2010.
Research shows that removing access to a method is one of the most effective ways of reducing suicides because the act is often impulsive. The introduction of catalytic converters for cars in the 1980s, which were made mandatory for all new vehicles in 1992, has had a dramatic impact on the suicide rate by reducing the toxicity of exhaust gases.
Motor gas poisoning had been one of the commonest methods of suicide, causing 508 deaths in 1979. Figures for 2005 show there were 219 deaths by this method. (...)
Skytevåpen gir flere selvmord
forskning.no 11.4.2007
(...) Viktig dødsårsak
Selvmord er en av de 15 største dødsårsakene i USA. For mennesker under 45 år er det en av de tre største. Bare i 2004 tok 32 439 amerikanere i denne aldersgruppa sitt eget liv, og halvparten av disse brukte et skytevåpen.
De som har skytevåpen i hjemmet, bruker dem når de forsøker å begå selvmord.
Bare fem prosent av alle selvmordstilfellene brukte skytevåpen, men av disse klarte 90 prosent å få gjennomført selvmordet.
Til sammenligning er den vanligste formen for selvmordsforsøk å bruke medikamenter, noe som utgjør 75 prosent av alle tilfellene. Her et det en lavere andel som lykkes.
- Det er mindre sannsynlig at folk dør av selvmordsforsøkene når de ikke har våpen i hjemmet, sier Matthew Miller, som var hovedforfatter av rapporten. (...)
Gun rentals are easy at firing ranges
seattlepi.nwsource.com 11.4.2007
WORCESTER, Mass. -- The 35-year-old woman handled her 9 mm Glock with ease. For three straight days, she honed her aim and hit bull's-eye after bull's-eye from the firing line at the Boston Gun Range.
Then she put the gun to her head and killed herself. (...)
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Association of Shooting Ranges do not keep statistics on shooting deaths at ranges.
More than half of the country's 32,000 suicides were committed with guns in 2004, the most recent year such statistics were compiled by the CDC. (...)
Butler County Jail officials try counseling to thwart more suicides
enquirer.com 11.4.2007
HAMILTON - Sometimes, when one person in a group commits suicide, others follow suit - and Butler County Jail officials are taking steps to try to stop that "copycat" effect. (...)
National suicide rate 'at all-time low'
24dash.com 11.4.2007
A progress report published by the National Institute for Mental Health in England today shows that good progress is being made towards meeting the Government target to reduce suicide by 20 per cent by 2010. (...)
STUDY: MORE GUNS, MORE SUICIDES
UPI.COM 10.4.2007
BOSTON, April 10 (UPI) -- Suicide rates among U.S. children, women and men of all ages are higher in states where more households have guns, the Harvard School of Public Health reported.
"Where there are more guns, there are more suicides," lead author Matthew Miller said in a statement.
Among people under 45 years old, suicide is one of the top three causes of death. In 2004, more than half of the 32,439 Americans who committed suicide used a firearm, according to study published in The Journal of Trauma. (...)
Study finds guns at home equal higher suicide risk
scotsman.com 10.4.2007
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Suicide rates among people of all ages are higher in states where more homes have guns, U.S. researchers reported on Tuesday.
Twice as many people committed suicide in the 15 states with the highest levels of household gun ownership, compared with the six states with the lowest levels, even though the population in all the states was about the same, the researchers found. (...)
Mangalore: 'Lack of easy access to solution leads to suicide in India'
mangalorean.com 10.4.2007
"Lack of easy access to solution to problems causes suicides in India," head of the Department of Social Works and Social Administration of the University of Hong Kong, Prof Veronica Pearson has said. (...)
Economic dependence makes women vulnerable to suicide, say experts
cities.expressindia.com
Of 1,987 women who ended their lives last year, more than 80 per cent were unemployed (...)
- Pressen må snakke mer åpent om selvmord
vg.no 8.4.2007
Pressen bør slutte å bruke omskrivinger og i stedet snakke mer åpent om selvmord, mener forfatter og utviklingsredaktør i Avisa Nordland, Reidun Kjelling Nybø. (...)
- Omskrivinger som «en personlig tragedie» og «ikke mistanke om noe kriminelt» har utspilt sin rolle. Vi har ødelagt dem, for vi har brukt dem om selvmord, slik at hvis du bruker «ikke mistanke om noe kriminelt» om noe som ikke er et selvmord, så tror folk at det er et selvmord likevel, sier Kjelling Nybø. (...)
Failure in love and financial problems -- reasons for suicides
zeenews.com 8.4.2007
Failure in love and financial problems are the major causes of suicides in the national capital, a survey has claimed.
The study, which analysed suicide notes of 40 men and women in Delhi over a period of five years, found that more women killed themselves for disturbed love life, while men were driven to take the extreme step because of their financial troubles.
Most of those who committed suicide were married, as compared to a phenomena seen in the Western countries where divorced, separated or single people end their lives.
"The study is first of its kind in the country. Analysis of suicide notes help in confirming cause of death as suicide and also help in suicide prevention programmes," Dr M S Bhatia, Head of the Psychiatry Department at GTB Hospital, told a news agency. (...)
Suicide in fact and fiction
ukiahdailyjournal.com 8.4.2007
Most discussions of suicide and attempted suicide are either speculative, shrouded in the predictable embarrassment, denial, guilt or shame of survivors and loved ones, or muddied by medical and therapeutic lingo, engaging in various forms of second-guessing, guesswork, rumors.
The experts, sometimes known as "suicidologists," tell us that suicide is not the result of depression, as much as hopelessness and despair at the moment of truth. Aloneness, hatred, particularly of oneself, isolation, alienation and a sense of being abandoned or disconnected from life are also cited. (...)
Report finds physicians can play bigger role in suicide prevention
ktuu.com 7.4.2007
(...) The study looked at 30 Alaska Native suicide cases and matched them up to a control group. Researchers found in the last year of life those who committed suicide were 2.75 times as likely to have contact with medical staff, more than three times likely to be treated for an injury and more than 22 times as likely to be treated for an alcohol-related event. (...)
Homosexuality, suicide
kansascity.com 30.3.2007
Sherry Gilstrap (3/30, Letters) writes in response to a Star Magazine article, saying that “our nation is going to pay a high price … for embracing (the) philosophy” that homosexuality is “perfectly normal.”
I could not disagree more. I feel our nation is paying a high price for not embracing this philosophy more. (...)
Groups seek to solve puzzle of suicide
greenbaypressgazette.com 5.4.2007
Brown County numbers show upward trend (...)
Jay Fostner, St. Norbert College psychologist and former director of the student counseling center, said any number of factors may be responsible: stress, grades, job prospects and highly scheduled lifestyles.
“Anecdotally, it seems to be impulsiveness,” Fostner said. Students often struggle to see the distant future, he said. (...)
Incidence of Suicidality in Young Adults With Anxiety Disorders Treated With Paroxetine: Presented at ADAA
docguide.com 3.4.2007
ST.LOUIS, MO -- April 3, 2007 -- New data suggest that while the suicidality rate is similar in paroxetine- and placebo-treated adult with nondepressive disorders overall, a higher (though not statistically significant) incidence of suicidality occurred in young adults treated with this drug than with placebo. (...)
The study was sponsored by GlaxoSmithKline. (...)
Interrupted Time Series Analysis of Regulations to Reduce Paracetamol (Acetaminophen) Poisoning
PLoS Med 2007;4(4): e105
(...) Conclusions
Introduction of regulations to limit availability of paracetamol coincided with a decrease in paracetamol-poisoning mortality. However, fatal poisoning involving aspirin, antidepressants, and to a lesser degree, paracetamol compounds, also showed similar trends. This raises the question whether the decline in paracetamol deaths was due to the regulations or was part of a wider trend in decreasing drug-poisoning mortality. We found little evidence to support the hypothesis that the 1998 regulations limiting pack size resulted in a greater reduction in poisoning deaths involving paracetamol than occurred for other drugs or nondrug poisoning suicide. (...)
Fewer Children Taking Antidepressants
forbes.com 2.4.2007
(...) The results are published in the April issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry.
In the study, Dr. Charles B. Nemeroff, of Emory University School of Medicine, and colleagues looked at prescriiptions written for SSRIs. (...)
But another expert disagrees that use of all SSRIs has declined among children and teens.
"Information I have says that the use of Prozac has increased over time," said Dr. Randall S. Stafford, director of the Program on Prevention Outcomes and Practices at the Stanford University School of Medicine's Prevention Research Center.
Strafford stressed that treating depression in children and teens should include a combination of drugs and counseling. "Physicians were prescribing more drugs without following the advice that pediatric patients should also receive counseling and frequent follow-up," he said. (...)
Suicide Attempt Following Initiation of Topiramate
Letter to the Editor
Am J Psychiatry 2007;164:682-a-683 (April) (American Psychiatric Association)
MATTHEW D. FAUBION, M.D. and DONALD S. CHRISTMAN, M.D.
To the Editor: Topiramate is approved for monotherapy in partial seizures, generalized tonic clonic seizures, and migraine prophylaxis (1). Topiramate has been reported to increase suicidality in patients with psychiatric illness (2). To our knowledge, there are no published reports of suicidal ideation or suicide attempts in patients without preexisting psychiatric illness. We present a case report of a patient without preexisting mental illness who ingested ethylene glycol while receiving topiramate. (...)
A Community Crisis': Rash of suicides, attempts prompts Enfield officials to take action
journalinquirer.com 29.3.2007
ENFIELD - The number of suicides in town has jumped dramatically in the past four months, and a new group has been formed to address what a local legislator is calling "a community crisis." (...)
Suicides linked to psychiatric disorder
dailytimes.com 29.3.2007
KARACHI: Nearly one million people commit suicide annually worldwide, and 90 percent of them have a diagnosable psychiatric disorder resulting from a combination of painful suffering, desperate hopelessness and underlying psychiatric illness.
These observations were given by speakers of a seminar on “Suicide: Myths and Realities” organized by the Department of Psychology, University of Karachi. (...)
Some suicides may have been deadly game
upi.com 28.3.2007
NEW YORK, March 28 (UPI) -- Doctors are questioning whether some teenage suicides in the United States over the past decade were really the accidental outcome of the "choking game." (...)
Unintentional Poisoning Deaths United States 1999-2004 (Utilsiktede forgiftningsdødsfall i USA 1999-2004)
JAMA. 2007;297:1309-1311 (March 28)
MMWR. 2007;56:93-96
(...) I 2004 var forgiftninger i USA, som årsak til utilsiktede skader, nummer to etter bilulykker .1 Nesten alle forgiftningsdødsfall i USA tilskrives medikamenter, og de fleste forgiftninger skjer som resultat av misbruk av reseptbelagte legemidler eller illegale midler.2 (...) (In 2004, poisoning was second only to motor-vehicle crashes as a cause of death from unintentional injury in the United States.1 Nearly all poisoning deaths in the United States are attributed to drugs, and most drug poisonings result from the abuse of prescriiption and illegal drugs.2)
Antallet utilsiktede forgiftningsdødsfall økte fra 12 186 i 1999 til 20 950 i 2004. Den årlige aldersjusterte rate økte med 62,5 %, fra 4,4 per 100 000 mennesker i 1999 til 7,1 i 2004. Økningen blant kvinner, fra 2,3 til 4,7 per 100,000 mennesker (103,0 %), var en dobling i forhold til økningen blant menn, fra 6,5 til 9,5 per 100,000 mennesker (47,1 %) (Table 1). (...) (The number of unintentional poisoning deaths increased from 12,186 in 1999 to 20,950 in 2004. The annual age-adjusted rate increased 62.5%, from 4.4 per 100,000 population in 1999 to 7.1 in 2004. The increase among females, from 2.3 to 4.7 per 100,000 population (103.0%), was twice the increase among males, from 6.5 to 9.5 per 100,000 population (47.1%) (Table 1).
Stor granskning av om självmord gått att hindra
På ett år, 1/4 2006-8/3 2007, har 23 fall av självmord anmälts till Socialstyrelsen från de fyra nordligaste länen.
Detta enligt de skärpta reglerna inom Lex Maria där man från sjukvårdens sida nu alltid måste anmäla självmord där patienten antingen är inskriven på psykiatrisk klinik, eller har varit i kontakt med psykvården inom fyra veckor innan fullbordat självmord.
Bakgrunden är flera omtalade fall där patienter tagit sitt liv trots att de varit inskrivna på psykklinik. (...)
Nationwide campaign for suicide prevention planned
yomiuri.co.jp 25.3.2007
A nonprofit organization is set to team up with the Cabinet Office and experts to conduct symposiums in the nation's 47 prefectures on preventing suicide and supporting bereaved families. (...)
According to the National Police Agency, there were 32,552 suicides in 2005. The number first exceeded 30,000 in 1998, an increase of about 8,400 from the previous year. Since then, the number has hovered at about 32,000 for eight consecutive years, nearly five times the amount of traffic accident-related deaths for the same period. (...)
Nearly 100 died in RCMP custody
cnews.canoe.ca 24.3.2007
More than 95 detainees have died in RCMP custody in the last 10 years, most commonly from suicides, medical conditions or overdoses of drugs or alcohol. (...)
ALCOHOL POISONING
Data reveals 15 suicides and 56 deaths related to medical conditions, drug overdose or alcohol poisoning in the 10-year period that excluded 1997-98. One death was from a gunshot, three were ruled "accidental" and four were from natural causes. Another 10 could not be explained and six fell in the "other" category. Six of the prisoners who died between 2000 and 2005 were women. (...)
Statistics show rise in suicides
belfasttoday.net 23.3.2007
SUICIDES rose by almost 40 per cent in Northern Ireland last year, new figures show.
Unemployment, association with other suicide victims and shortcomings in the mental health system are all thought to have contributed to the increase.
According to the provisional 2006 mortality statistics, published yesterday by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA), the overall number of deaths recorded in the Province rose by just two per cent. (...)
Yesterday, he said the new figures showed just how bad the suicide "epidemic" is in Northern Ireland.
"Unless we get to grips with it, it will rise again," he said. "More people are prepared to put deaths down as suicide rather than misadventure, families have been working tirelessly to break down the barriers and stigma associated with this." (...)
Anti depressant-suicide link probed
A coroner's investigation is probing possible links between commonly prescribed anti-depressant drugs and suicide. (...)
Selvmordsfare etter psykiatrisk behandling
forskning.no 13.3.2007
Ungdom som har vært henvist til akutt poliklinisk behandling i barne – og ungdomspsykiatrien, har to hundre ganger så stor selvmordsfare som den øvrige befolkningen. Uansett henvisningsgrunn. (...)
Experts warn about media coverage
expatica.com 13.3.2007
13 March 2007
AMSTERDAM - The Netherlands has been shocked by a family tragedy for the second time in the space of a week. A 32-year-old man in Haarlem-Noord killed his mother-in-law on Monday before jumping in front of a train holding his two sons, aged four and six. (...)
Study finds obese men less likely to commit suicide
dailymail.com 13.3.2007
A new study has found that obese men have a much lower risk of suicide, a finding that scientists believe might be related to their higher production of insulin and other hormones that affect mood. (...)
The study, published Tuesday in the Archives of Internal Medicine, reported that the men were 42 percent less likely to commit suicide than those at the lower end of the normal weight range. (...)
En av åtte Oslo-jenter sier de har forsøkt selvmord
vg.no 12.3.2007
Hver åttende Oslo-jente sier at hun har forsøkt å ta sitt eget liv. Halvparten så mange tenåringsgutter sier det samme. (...)
Forsker Fredrik Walby ved seksjon for selvmordsforskning og -forebygging ved Universitetet i Oslo, understreker at det er veldig få under 18 år som tar sitt eget liv. Det er også flere gutter enn jenter som begår selvmord, selv om flere jenter sier de har forsøkt.
- Når guttene først prøver, benytter de seg av farligere og raskere metoder, sier Walby.
Selvmordsforskeren mener mange som sier de har forsøkt å ta sitt eget liv, ikke ønsker å dø.
Han understreker at det likevel er grunn til å ta tallene alvorlig.
- Det er alarmerende at så mange melder om selvmordsforsøk, sier han. (...)
Suicide by cop can be hard to determine
recordnet.com 12.3.2007
DEFINITION OF SUICIDE-BY-COP
"A situation in which a suicidal person acts in a consciously life-threatening manner to the degree that it compels a police official to respond with deadly force."
The following criteria should be present:
• The subject must demonstrate the intent to die.
• The subject must possess a clear understanding of the finality of the act.
• The subject must confront a law enforcement official to the degree that it compels that official to act with deadly force.
• The subject must die; otherwise, it is an attempted suicide by cop.
-Source: www.suicidebycop.com (...)
Most student suicides 'occur during summer'
netdoctor.co.uk 9.3.2007
University students are most vulnerable to committing suicide towards the end or start of the academic year, according to a new research. (...)
MORE MEN ARE TAKING OWN LIVES
dailyrecord.co.uk 8.3.2007
THE number of men taking their own lives in Scotland has risen by almost a quarter in 15 years.
And the suicide rate is notably higher in deprived areas. (...)
Male suicide figures on increase
bbc.co.uk 7.3.2007
Over a 15-year period 74% of suicides were men
The number of men committing suicide in Scotland has risen by almost a quarter over 15 years, it has been revealed.
A Scottish Executive study found the number of men taking their own lives increased by 22% between 1989 and 2004. For women the rise was 6%. (...)
'Weak' warnings haven't cut prescribing, study finds
therecord.com 2.3.2007
Government "black box'' cautions about a drug's potentially dangerous side-effects need to be more specifically worded, suggests a study, which found that North American warnings for certain antidepressants about increased suicide risk had no impact on doctors' prescribing patterns. (...)
Suicide season
eurekareporter.com 26.2.2007
It was a popular myth — now popularly debunked — that suicide is more prevalent around the winter holidays. There are some slow to get the news, and to this day it isn’t impossible to find one so-called expert or another who says that a spike in suicides regularly occurs between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day. (...)
Genetic Link to Suicidal Tendencies Nailed Down
healthfinder.gov 23.1.2007
A third study replicates finding that chromosome 2 region plays a vital role (...)
5,200 suicides in a yr
indiatimes.com 23.2.2007
(...) Congress MLA from Dehgam Jagdish Thakore raised the question in the state Assembly as to how many cases of individual and 'family suicides' were registered in the state in the past one year.
Thakore alleged that moneylenders who unabashedly got gullible people in their clutches by charging a exorbitantly high rates of interest were mainly responsible for pushing people to suicide. (...)
Man blames shooting on pills
roanoke.com 20.2.2007
Rodney Startz said he stopped taking antidepressants a few weeks before shooting his former girlfriend. (...)
Study: 120 Teen Suicides Per Year In N.C.
wxii12.com 19.2.2007
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- A new report shows that teenage suicide is on the rise, with the latest statistics revealing that more than 120 North Carolina teens commit suicide each year.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's report said the suicide rate among teens has jumped 20 percent. (...)
Kameraovervaking mot sjølvmord
nrk.no 17.2.2006
nrk.no/teksttv
I Sverige ønskjer Jernbaneverket å hindra sjølvmord langs togskinnene ved å setja opp kamera. I Skåne har slik kameraovervaking allereie hatt effekt. Talet på sjølvmord er halvert sidan 2003, skriv Dagens Nyheter. Jernbaneverket forhandlar no fram ein rammeavtale for å kunna setja opp kamera i heile landet. Dei siste ti åra har omlag 500 personar i Sverige teke livet sitt langs togskinnene. (...)
Marked drop in elderly suicide rate last year
channelnewsasia.com 15.2.2007
SINGAPORE: In the last five years, an average of 65 elderly people committed suicide each year in Singapore. (...)
Life And Death On The Rez
yankton.net 10.2.2007
(...) According to the American Association of Suicidology, there are currently more than 30,000 suicides annually in the U.S. That equates to approximately 83 per day; 1 suicide every 17 minutes, with 12 out of every 100,000 people killing themselves.
As the eighth leading cause of death in the United States, suicide is the third leading cause of death among young people ages 15-24. (...)
Richard Milda, domestic violence and sexual assault prevention task force coordinator for the Santee Sioux Nation, said he attributes the high rate of suicides in young people to their lack of life skills.
"We don't have the living tools: the life skills that contribute to spiritual, emotional and physical well-being," he said.
Studies also show that areas with high rates of substance abuse incur more cases of deaths by violence and suicides.
"Substance abuse is a major contributing factor to suicides," Milda stated. (...)
We can't stop suicides says prison governor
belfasttelegraph.co.uk 10.2.2007
More prison inmates could hang themselves despite every precaution being taken, a senior governor admitted yesterday.
Isobel Miller, governor of Hydebank, Belfast, said it was impossible to safeguard the lives of vulnerable prisoners completely, despite a spate of suicides. (...)
Skole mot selvmord
aftenposten.no 10.2.2007
Stadig flere jenter prøver å ta sitt eget liv. Stortingsrepresentant Anna Ljunggren (Ap) mener forebygging av selvmord må inn i skolen. (...)
Skal øke innsatsen mot selvmord
helserevyen.no 8.2.2007
Hvert år begår 550 personer selvmord i Norge. Nå vil helse- og omsorgsminister Sylvia Brustad øke innsatsen til forebygging, og da særlig i kommunene. Det kom fram da Brustad svarte på en interpellasjon fra stortingsrepresentant Anna Ljunggren (A) tirsdag denne uken.
Ljunggren viste til at 529 personer tok sitt eget liv i Norge i 2004, og at 93 av disse var menn mellom 15 og 29 år. Selvmord er den hyppigste dødsårsaken blant unge menn i Norge i dag, men jentene kommer etter med en økning på nesten 30 prosent fra 1992 til 2002. (...)
Vet for lite om selvmordsforebygging
helserevyen.no 8.2.2007
Det finnes svært lite vitenskaplig dokumentasjon på hva som faktisk forebygger selvmord hos pasienter i psykisk helsevern.
Det viser rapporten Forebygging av selvmord, del 2, en systematisk kunnskapsoppsummering fra Nasjonalt kunnskapssenter for helsetjenesten. (...)
(Anm: Forebygging av selvmord, del 1. (Rapport fra Kunnskapssenteret Nr 24–2006). )
Youth Suicide Rate Rises to an Alarming 20%
waleg.com 7.2.2007
(...) The US government showed a 2003 to 2004 report regarding the abrupt increase of the suicide rate among the youth.
(...) That same year when this sudden increase in suicide rate came out was also the year that the Food and Drug Administration came up with the black box warning.
However, other experts say people should not jump to conclusion since there’s no concrete evidence to connect the black box warning to the suicide rate. (...)
(Anm: Antidepressant Use in Children, Adolescents, and Adults. http://www.fda.gov/cder/drug/antidepressants/default.htm - http://www.fda.gov/cder/present/DIA2005/Mosholder.pdf
Suicide Rate Increases Among Children, CDC Report Finds. kaisernetwork.org 7.2.2007.
Annual Summary of Vital Statistics: 2005. PEDIATRICS 2006;119(2):345-360 (February 2007).)
The data are concerning, but it's too soon to know if they're anything more than a statistical blip, said Dr. John March, a Duke University psychiatry professor. (...)
Teen Suicide Spike Linked to SSRI Black Box
medpagetoday.com 6.2.2007
-- Teen and childhood suicides rose sharply in 2004, for the first time in more than 10 years, and some are linking this to a reduced use of antidepressants that year because of black box label warnings mandated by the FDA. (...)
Rate of Youth Suicide Going Up In United States
dogflu.ca 6.2.2007
A study by the CDC has found that the rate of teen suicides across the United States is on the rise (...)
"This is very disturbing news," said Dr. David Fassler, a University of Vermont psychiatry professor. (...)
There are however, health experts who agree that by not administering antidepressants to children, they are not receiving the treatment that they need: "I have no doubt that there is such a relationship," said Dr. Charles Nemeroff, chairman of the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the Emory University School of Medicine. (...)
Kids' Suicides Rise, CDC Report Finds
cbsnews.com 6.2.2007
U.S. report shows rise in youth suicides after decade of decline; explanation unclear (...)
Kids' Suicides Rise, CDC Report Finds
nytimes.com 5.2.2007
(...) The CDC is expected to issue a more thorough report on the data in a month or two.
Kids' Suicides Rise, CDC Report Finds
By LINDSEY TANNER, AP Medical Writer
foxnews.com 5.2.2007
CHICAGO — New government figures show a surprising increase in youth suicides after a decade of decline, and some mental health experts think a drop in use of antidepressant drugs may be to blame. (...)
Child Suicide Rate Spikes Nearly 20 Percent
abclocal.go.com 5.2.2007
ABC News Medical Unit
- Child and teen suicide rates rose for the first time in more than a decade in 2004 - and many psychological experts said the stronger warning labels that led to a drop in the number of prescriiptions for antidepressant drugs may be to blame. (...)
Flere unge jenter velger døden
vg.no 5.2.2007
I perioden fra 1992 til 2002 har andelen unge jenter som har forsøkt å ta sitt eget liv, økt med nesten 30 prosent, viser en undersøkelse fra Norsk institutt for forskning om oppvekst, velferd og aldring (NOVA). (...)
Flere selvmordsforsøk
aftenposten.no 5.2.2007
I perioden fra 1992 til 2002 har andelen unge jenter som har forsøkt å ta sitt eget liv, økt med nesten 30 prosent, viser en undersøkelse fra Norsk institutt for forskning om oppvekst, velferd og aldring (NOVA). (...)
Suicide mortality data need revision
Diego De Leo
MJA 2007; 186 (3): 157-158 (5.2.2007)
TO THE EDITOR: In 2004, there were 580 cases of suicide in Queensland, and not 453, as reported by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) on 14 March 2006.1 These data alone reverse the declining trend for suicide mortality nationally in the most recent years. (...)
Covering suicides requires sensitivity in times of turmoil
jconline.com 4.2.2007
Few people over the age of 40 have been untouched by suicide. Most of us have lost a family member, a coworker or a classmate to suicide.
Across the country, more than 30,000 suicides occur each year. That compares to roughly 16,000 homicides a year, and 40,000 to 45,000 highway deaths annually. (...)
Colleges reach out to prevent suicides
sfgate.com 4.2.2007
Not far into her freshman year, the once-outgoing and ambitious Dana Gatziolis started skipping classes, lost her appetite and slept whenever she could. Then followed a long struggle that included treatment, a suicide attempt and more treatment. Now she helps other students facing depression.
Gatziolis, who is doing well as a sophomore at St. Mary's College in Notre Dame, Ind., appears to be a success story at a time when college counselors across the country report seeing an increasing number of students with severe psychological problems. (...)
Every fortnight: a life lost, just begun
theage.com.au 4.2.2007
(...) To gain a greater understanding of the problem, The Sunday Age asked State Coroner Graeme Johnstone for access to files on teen suicide cases between January 2004 and May 2005.
He agreed to open the files on the condition the children remained anonymous. Their parents were informed of the newspaper's request.
Thirty-six cases were examined: all terrible, each with its own special circumstances. But themes emerged: bullying, stress, relationship breakdown and drugs were common. The statistics are a grim snapshot: (...)
Mr Johnstone said the number of recorded suicides might not necessarily reflect the number of young people who had deliberately taken their own lives, because of the burden of proof that is required by the courts.
The VicHealth chairman of adolescent health research at the Centre for Adolescent Health, Professor George Patton, said there appeared to be a correlation between bullying and mental health problems, particularly in young women and boys, although suicide was most common among males. (...)
Nytter oppfølging etter selvmordsforsøk?
Tidsskr Nor Lægeforen 2007; 127: 283
Økt psykososial intervensjon etter selvmordsforsøk reduserer ikke risikoen for selvmord, viser en metaanalyse. Funnet bør ikke tillegges for mye vekt, mener norsk forsker. (...)
- Nesten alltid menn som dreper
nettavisen.no 1.2.2007
PsykoloG1Professor forklarer hvordan de som dreper familien sin tenker. (...)
Glaxo Tried to Hide Paxil/Teen Suicide Link
forbes.com 30.1.2007
(...) Glaxo said it "rejects any suggestion that it has improperly withheld any drug trial information," BBC News reported.
The company emails were uncovered when Glaxo was forced to open its confidential internal archive after bereaved families in the United States joined together to sue the drug maker.
In one email, a public relations executive working for Glaxo wrote: "Originally, we had planned to do extensive media relations surrounding this study until we actually viewed the results.
"Essentially, the study did not really show it was effective in treating adolescent depression, which is not something we want to publicize." (...)
Bilde av selvmordsforsøk ble for sterkt
journalisten.no 30.1.2007
Både Bladet Tromsø og VG brøt ifølge Pressens Faglige Utvalg god presseskikk da de publiserte bildet av en ung kvinne som ville hoppe fra Tromsøbroen. (...)
Statistics on honor-killings and suicides among women shock Ankara
hurriyet.com 29.1.2007
As a result of question posed by CHP Aydin MP Ozlem Cercioglu to State Minister Nimet Cubukcu, statistics on so-called "honor killings" and suicides among women in Turkey over the past 5 years have been revealed, causing wide upset among officials in Ankara and citizens alike.
According to the statistics quoted by Minister Cubukcu, there have been 1,806 women killed in honor killings over the past 5 years, and another 5,375 suicides by women in the same period of time. (...)
Report: More Virginians kill themselves than are murdered
dailypress.com 25.1.2007
RICHMOND, Va. -- More Virginians kill themselves than are murdered, and white people are more prone to suicide while black people are more at risk for homicide, the state medical examiner's office said Thursday. (...)
German jailed for selling "suicide pills" online
reutershealth.com 24.1.2007
BERLIN (Reuters) - A 23-year-old man who sold a lethal cocktail of drugs as "suicide pills" on the Internet was sentenced by a court in Germany on Wednesday to three years and nine months in prison.
The man, an Albanian citizen, had sold pills which contained anti-epileptic and anti-psychotic medicines in exchange for cash and in some cases items such as laptop computers, German media reported.
Suicide and assisting suicide are not illegal in Germany. (...)
Toxicolo+gy Testing and Results for Suicide Victims—13 States, 2004
JAMA. 2007;297:355-356 (January 24/31)
MMWR. 2006;55:1245-1248
In 2003, an estimated 31,484 suicides (10.7 per 100,000 population) occurred in the United States.1 Suicide was the fourth leading cause of death among persons aged 10-64 years and the second and third leading causes of death among persons aged 25-34 and 10-24 years, respectively.2 Few studies have attempted to determine the contribution of substance use to suicide.3-4 To assess toxicology testing practices and to determine the prevalence of positive results for alcohol or other drugs, CDC analyzed test results of suicide victims in the 13 states that collected data for the National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) in 2004. This report summarizes the results of that analysis, which determined that (1) the percentage of suicide victims tested varied among states, ranging from 25.9% to 97.7%; (2) of those victims tested, 33.3% were positive for alcohol, and 16.4% were positive for opiates; and (3) similar percentages of poisoning suicide (i.e., suspected intentional overdose) and nonpoisoning suicide victims tested positive for alcohol or other drugs, with the exception of opiates. These results underscore the need to continue monitoring toxicology test results of suicide victims, which might identify patterns of substance use that can help guide development of effective suicide interventions. Such data can be enhanced by uniform, comprehensive, toxicology testing practices on a state and national basis. (...)
'Alcoholism also a cause of farmers' suicide'
hindustantimes.com 22.1.2007
In a shocking revelation, a group of journalism students on a study tour of Vidharba district, plagued by farmers' suicides, have come to a conclusion that besides indebtedness, another precipitating factor for their tendency to commit suicide is alcoholism, which has affected even minors in a big way. (...)
Lobbyist pushes suicide prevention
washingtontimes.com 22.1.2007
Every 17 minutes someone commits suicide in the America. Brian Altman wants people to know how suicide can be prevented so it doesn't happen to anyone they love.
This month, Mr. Altman was named director of public policy and program development at the Suicide Prevention Action Network (SPAN) in Northwest.
SPAN was created in 1996 as a nonprofit organization for people who lost loved ones to suicide and want to build awareness of mental health.
"Brian is just what we were looking for," said Jerry Reed, executive director of SPAN. "He has a lot of experience working with Congress and the administration on mental health issues." (...)
Dangers of Untreated Depression Outweigh Drug Risks, Coalition Says
Psychiatr News January 19, 2007
Volume 42, Number 2, page 10
© 2007 American Psychiatric Association
A critical mass of patients, clinicians, researchers, and other mental health advocates successfully delivers a clear message to an FDA advisory committee. (...)
"As advocates for people living with depression and other mental illnesses," the letter began, "we strongly urge the FDA to carefully consider the potential impact of the agency's public statements on the risks and benefits of antidepressants. Access to effective treatments for depression is pivotal in improving the lives of the 19 million Americans that face this devastating illness each year."
The coalition's efforts were led at the December 13 briefing by David Shern, Ph.D., president and CEO of Mental Health America (MHA). He noted that "without treatment, this disorder can be fatal—15 percent of people who live with untreated depression take their own lives. (...)
In addition to Shern, the briefing featured APA President-elect Carolyn Robinowitz, M.D.; Carl Salzman, M.D., a professor of psychiatry at Harvard who represented the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology; and patient/consumer advocate Sheri Walton, who also represented MHA. (...)
These are the 15 members of the coalition:
• American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
• American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry
• American Association of Suicidology
• American College of Neuropsychopharmacology
• American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
• American Psychiatric Association
• American Psychotherapy Association
• Children and Adults With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
• Families for Depression Awareness
• Kristin Brooks Hope Center
• Mental Health America
• National Alliance on Mental Illness
• Suicide Awareness Voices of Education
• Suicide Prevention Action Network
• The Jason Foundation Inc. (...)
Doctors dispute linking concussions, suicide
centredaily.com 20.1.2007
Did the pounding Andre Waters absorbed in the NFL leave him with brain damage that ultimately led to his depression and subsequent suicide in November?
That is the claim made by a Pittsburgh neuropathologist, Dr. Bennet Omalu, in a story in Thursday's New York Times. But several prominent members of the medical community, including the Tampa doctor who performed the autopsy on Waters, reacted to the article with skepticism. (...)
Expert Ties Ex-Player’s Suicide to Brain Damage
nytimes.com 1.1.2007
Since the former National Football League player Andre Waters killed himself in November, an explanation for his suicide has remained a mystery. But after examining remains of Mr. Waters’s brain, a neuropathologist in Pittsburgh is claiming that Mr. Waters had sustained brain damage from playing football and he says that led to his depression and ultimate death. (...)
Var tredje tar sitt liv trots psykkontakt
dn.se 17.1.2007
Vart tredje självmord i Sverige begås av personer mindre än en månad efter att de varit i kontakt med psykvården. Under förra året skedde det minst 329 gånger.
- DET ÄR MER ÄN vi trodde att det skulle vara, säger Jonas Karlsson, chef för tillsynsavdelningen på Socialstyrelsen, till TT.
Den senaste tiden har flera fall uppmärksammats där en person som sökt hjälp hos psykiatrin tagit sitt liv strax därpå. (...)
SUICIDES FROM GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE INCREASE; MERITS OF REPORTING NUMBERS IN DISPUTE
cbs5.com 17.1.2007
(...) At least 34 people died after jumping from the bridge last year, a number that could increase at the conclusions of ongoing investigations into other deaths that appeared to be Golden Gate Bridge suicides, Holmes said. (...)
Overdose-boom i Trondheim
nrk.no 11.1.2007
Det er lenge siden det var så mange narkotika-overdoser i Trøndelag som i fjor. (...)
Up to 17 confirmed suicides among UK troops after serving in Iraq
irna.ir 11.1.2007
As many as 23 British troops may have committed suicide while or after serving in Iraq up to the end of 2005, according to the latest official figures. (...)
Suicide rates in hospitals 'very high'
thewest.com.au 11.1.2007
Suicide is the second most common cause of death of people admitted to Australian hospitals suffering from injury, a new report has found.
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare released two reports - one looking at injuries that resulted in admission to Australian hospitals in the 2003/04 period and the other looking at deaths in hospitals caused by injury.
Falls were the most common cause of both deaths and admissions to hospitals in 2003/04 - causing almost 125,000 hospital admissions and almost 3,000 deaths. (...)
Newly Released Prisoners At High Risk Of Death
medicalnewstoday.com 11.1.2007
Inmates from Washington state prisons in the US are 13 times more likely to die within the first two weeks of their release than other people of similar age, sex and race. The most likely cause of death at this vulnerable period of a former inmate's life is drug overdose, followed by suicide, heart disease, and homicide.
This research is published in the latest edition of the New England Journal of Medicine. (...)
Link Between Suicide and Sleeping Problems
sr.se 10.1.2007
Sahlgrenska University Hospital
A new Swedish study reveals that sleep disturbances, especially nightmares, are common among people who have attempted suicide.
Co-author Nisse Sjöström of Gothenburg’s Sahlgrenska University Hospital says as far as they know, this is the first report on the association between nightmares and suicide. The researchers studied 165 adults, aged between 18 and 68, who were admitted to the hospital after attempting suicide.
Eighty-nine percent reported having at least one type of sleeping problem, with difficulty falling asleep as the most common. Two out of three reported experiencing nightmares.
The researchers report their results in the journal of the American Sleep Disorders Association. (...)
Teen suicide warning signs tough to spot
upi.com 3.1.2007
-- A Michigan child psychologist says the warning signs of suicidal thoughts in youth are often confused with "normal" experiences of teens.
But it is possible to learn to identify the signs of risk, according to Cheryl King, the director of the youth depression and suicide prevention program at the University of Michigan Depression Center. (...)
Nightmares linked to suicide attempts
upi.com 2.1.2007
GOTEBORG, Sweden, Jan. 2 (UPI) -- Sleep disturbances are common among suicide attempters, and nightmares are associated with suicidality, according to Swedish researchers.
The study, conducted by Nisse Sjostrom and colleagues of Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Goteborg, focused on 165 patients ages 18 to 68 who were admitted to medical units or psychiatric wards at Sahlgrenska after a suicide attempt.
The researchers found that 89 percent of subjects reported some kind of sleep disturbance. The most common complaint was difficulties initiating sleep -- 73 percent, followed by 69 percent who had difficulties maintaining sleep, 66 percent with nightmares and 58 percent with early-morning awakening. Nightmares were associated with a five-fold increase in risk for high suicidality. (...)
What drives a person to suicide?
xinhuanet.com 18.12.2006
BEIJING, Dec. 18 (Xinhua) -- Depression, poor quality of life and unemployment can be killers -- they are listed among the top ten reasons for suicide in China, according to a research report.
The research, launched in 2002 and jointly conducted by the Beijing Suicide Research and Prevention Center and the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, found that serious depression, a previous failed suicide attempt and a strong emotional stimulus are critical warning signs in suicide cases. (...)
Should antidepressant drugs be banned in children?
innovations-report.de 15.12.2006
A review by David Cohen (Universitè Pierre et Marie Curie) addresses a hot topic in clinical proctice: the prescriiption of antidepressant drugs in children and adolescents in the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics. (...)
(Anm: Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics 2007;76:5-14.
(...) Conclusion: An SSRI prescriiption is still a second-line option in severe and resistant forms of youth depression. However, in children and adolescents only specialists well trained in child and adolescent psychiatry should prescribe SSRIs.)
For mange over 65 begår selvmord
netdoktor.com 14.12.2006
Selvmordstallet falder i alle andre aldersgrupper end hos ældre. Kritikken går på, at sundhedspersonalet overser faresignalerne. (...)
Desuden er de ældre fast besluttede, når de først har bestemt sig for at dø: ”Når de ældre har besluttet sig for at dø, så lykkes det for dem,” siger overlæge Jonna Jacobsen fra Center for Selvmordsforebyggelse i Nordjylland. (...)
Panel Wants Broader Antidepressant Labeling
nytimes.com 14.12.2006
— Strong warning labels about the suicide risk associated with antidepressants, which now include children and adolescents, should be extended to adults under 25, a federal advisory panel concluded Wednesday.
The panel, which voted 6 to 2 to recommend the warnings after a daylong hearing, also advised the Food and Drug Administration to require including information in the drugs’ labels highlighting the risks of untreated depression.
Since 2004, antidepressants have carried black-box warnings — the strongest the F.D.A. can require — about the risk of suicidal thinking and behavior for children and adolescents. The warnings appear in bold type set off by black borders, usually at the top of the prescribing information provided by drug makers to doctors and patients.
“I really feel we have an obligation to warn the public when we have new information, and we do,” said Jean Bronstein, a consumer representative and panel member from Sunnyvale, Calif., referring to a recent F.D.A. analysis that found a link between suicidal behavior and antidepressants in young adults, but not in older people. (...)
Connection between SSRIs, suicide coming under review
ama-assn.org 18.12.2006
Studies will undertake a variety of approaches ranging from examining large databases to developing assessment tools. (...)
The Big Suicide Loophole in Antidepressant Drug Safety Studies
huffingtonpost.com 10.12.2006
On December 13, 2006 the FDA's Psychopharmaceutical Drugs Advisory Committee (PDAC) is meeting in Silver Spring, Maryland to discuss antidepressant-induced suicidal behavior in adults. In 2004 the FDA held similar hearings on children and concluded that antidepressants do in fact cause suicide in humans under age eighteen. A warning has been placed in all antidepressant labels or package inserts. (...)
Suicide not as rare as many think
upi.com 8.12.2006
-- Suicide, the 11th-leading cause of death in the United States, is not as rare as many think, says a U.S. professor of psychology.
John McIntosh, an expert in suicide prevention at Indiana University South Bend, says suicide claims 31,000 Americans each year and that suicide is nearly twice as common as homicide, killing one person every 16.7 minutes in the United States. (...)
Antidepressants Up Suicide Risk In Young
cbsnews.com 5.12.2006
FDA Says Suicidal Behavior And Thoughts Increase In Young Adults Who Take The Drugs (...)
Antidepressants raise risk of suicidal behavior for young people, FDA says
usatoday.com 5.12.2006
— Using antidepressants increases the risk of suicidal behavior among young adults but lessens it for seniors, the Food and Drug Administration said Tuesday.
The effects of antidepressants on adults from 25 to 64 were mixed, so much so that the FDA would only conclude the drug had a neutral effect on suicidal behavior for them. (...)
Flere med dobbeldiagnose rus og psykiatri
shdir.no 6.12.2006
Antall mennesker med dobbeldiagnose rus og psykiatri har økt de siste årene og i dag har omtrent halvparten av dem som legges inn på psykiatriske akuttavdelinger rusproblemer i større eller mindre grad. (...)
Study Finds Medication Raises Suicide Risks in Young Adults
nytimes.com 6.12.2006
In a long-awaited analysis, health officials reported yesterday that antidepressant medications appeared to increase significantly the risk of suicide attempts and related behaviors in adults under 25, while reducing such risks in older people. (...)
Elderly Antidepressant Risk May Be Less
forbes.com 5.12.2006
The Food and Drug Administration said Tuesday that antidepressants appear to increase the risk of suicidal thinking in young adults, but that in older adults the risk declines.
The FDA reviewed data from 372 clinical studies involving 11 antidepressants including Paxil from GlaxoSmithKline PLC, Zoloft from Pfizer Inc. and Prozac from Eli Lilly & Co. The studies involved almost 100,000 patients. (...)
Antidepressant-Linked Suicide Risk May Vary With Age (Update4)
bloomberg.com 5.12.2006
- Antidepressant drugs such as Wyeth's Effexor and GlaxoSmithKline Plc's Paxil appear to increase the chance of suicidal thoughts and attempts in adults under age 25, while reducing the risk among older adults, U.S. regulators said. (...)
Cautious Interpretation
"We have to be cautious in interpreting a causal link between the medications and any increase in suicidal thinking and behavior,'' especially among young adults, said Kelly Posner, a Columbia University psychiatrist who helped create the system the FDA uses to categorize suicidal events. Even with young adults, "These studies were not set up to assess for suicide risks.''
The review of studies in adults examined results from 372 trials involving 99,839 participants, the FDA said in its report today. Also included were Lilly's Cymbalta, Pfizer Inc.'s Zoloft, Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.'s Serzone, Forest Laboratories Inc.'s Celexa and Lexapro, Akzo Nobel NV's Remeron and Solvay SA's Luvox.
In the trials reviewed by the agency, eight patients committed suicide, 134 attempted suicide, 10 took preparatory steps to kill themselves but never made an actual attempt, and 378 reported thinking about suicide without taking any action. Agency reviewers looked at all these categories in their analysis. (...)
FDA staff: Adult antidepressant risks differ by age
reuters.com 5.12.2006
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Taking antidepressants appears to raise the risk of suicidal thoughts and behavior in adults younger than 25, U.S. Food and Drug Administration staff said in an analysis released on Tuesday. (...)
Antidepressant drug treatment reduces mortality, researchers say
reuters.co.uk 5.12.2006
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Antidepressant drug treatment is associated with a reduced risk of completed suicides and overall mortality among adults, although it also appears to increase the likelihood of nonfatal suicide attempts, according to a research team in Finland. (...)
Läkemedel minskade självmordsrisk
dagensmedicin.se 5.12.2006
Antidepressiva läkemedel minskar risken för att deprimerade patienter ska begå självmord. Och hos barn och ungdomar syns ingen ökad suicidrisk, enligt en ny studie från Finland. (...)
Däremot löpte barn och ungdomar som fick läkemedlet paroxetin en femfaldigt ökad risk för annan våldsam eller olycksrelaterad dödlighet. (...)
Archives of General Psychiatry, 2006; 63: 1358-1367 (...)
(Anm: paroxsetin (paroxetine); markesføres i Norge under handelsnavn som bl.a. Seroxat; Paxil i USA.)
Antidepressant drug treatment reduces mortality
reutershealth.com 4.12.2006
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Antidepressant drug treatment is associated with a reduced risk of completed suicides and overall mortality among adults, although it also appears to increase the likelihood of nonfatal suicide attempts, according to a research team in Finland. (...)
The study group included 15,390 patients who were not psychotic, at least 10 years old, and hospitalized after a failed suicide attempt between 1997 and 2003. The authors evaluated treatment with three classes of antidepressant drugs: tricyclic antidepressants (such as Elavil); selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (such as Prozac); and serotonergic-noradrenergic antidepressants (such as Effexor). During the follow-up period there were 602 completed suicides, 7,136 suicide attempts and 1,583 deaths. (...)
Tiihonen and his associates conclude: "Antidepressant treatment may contribute to a substantial decrease in mortality among this patient population."
SOURCE: Archives of General Psychiatry, December 2006. (...)
Homicides by mentally ill 'largely avoidable'
inthenews.co.uk 4.12.2006
1,300 suicides by mentally ill people have been carried out during past five years (...)
Behandling forebygger selvmord
helserevyen.no 29.11.2006
Psykoterapi og antidepressiver kan redusere selvmord og selvmordsatferd. Det viser en systematisk gjennomgang av medisinske studier.
Det går frem i en ny rapport fra Kunnskapssenteret, som er gjort på oppdrag fra Sosial- og helsedirektoratet. (...)
Offensiv mot selvmord
aftenposten.no 23.11.2006
Selvmord er ikke "noe som bare skjer". Målrettet innsats mot risikogrupper redder mange liv.
- En effektiv og vellykket behandling.
Slik lyder den hyggelige meldingen fra en av Norges fremste fagfolk, professor Lars Mehlum ved Seksjon for selvmordsforskning og -forebygging, Universitetet i Oslo. Verktøyet han snakker om, har et vanskelig navn, men resultatet er enkelt å forstå: En betydelig reduksjon av antallet selvmord blant unge mennesker.
Så langt har få unge nordmenn fått nyte godt av "dialektisk adferdsterapi". Men etter overbevisende resultater i bl.a. USA, Canada og Nederland, etableres nå behandlingstilbudet her hjemme, i første omgang ved Ullevål og Aker Universitetssykehus og ved Lillestrømklinikken i Akershus. (...)
Tests find alcohol in many suicides
washingtontimes.com 25.11.2006
More than a third of those who committed suicide in 2004 tested positive for alcohol, according to a federal study.
The test results, taken from suicide victims in 13 states, also showed that 10 percent had opiates, cocaine, marijuana or amphetamines in their system, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in the report, which was released Thursday.
"These results underscore the need to continue monitoring toxicology test results of suicide victims, which might identify patterns of substance use that can help guide development of effective suicide interventions," wrote the authors, led by Debra Karch of the CDC's Division of Violence Prevention. The findings were published in the agency's Morbidity & Morbidity Weekly Report. (...)
Alcohol found in one-third of U.S. suicides
reuters.com 23.11.2006
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Alcohol may be involved in as many as one-third of U.S. suicides, federal researchers reported on Thursday.
Test results from suicide victims in 13 states showed that 33.3 percent had alcohol in their blood, and 16.4 percent had opiates, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in its weekly report on death and disease.
"These results underscore the need to continue monitoring toxicology test results of suicide victims, which might identify patterns of substance use that can help guide development of effective suicide interventions," the team at CDC's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control wrote.
Just as many suicide victims had alcohol or other drugs in their systems when they were suspected of using the drugs to kill themselves as those who used other means, the researchers said.
In 2003, an estimated 31,484 suicides (10.7 per 100,000 population) occurred in the United States," the report reads.
"Suicide was the fourth leading cause of death among persons aged 10 to 64 years and the second and third leading causes of death among persons aged 25 to 34 and 10 to 24 years, respectively." (...)
Growth in child suicides of 'extreme concern'
nzherald.co.nz 20.11.2006
The emergence of suicide among 10- to 14-year-olds is of "extreme concern" and efforts to reduce New Zealand's high suicide rate must address this age group, an independent committee has warned.
The Child and Youth Mortality Review Committee highlighted the worrying suicide trend in its latest yearly report to the Minister of Health.
Using data from 2002 to 2004, the committee found that more than 10 per cent of all deaths in the 10 to 14-year age group were due to suicide. (...)
Suicides most common by older white men
gotriad.com 19.11.2006
(...) Statistics show that about every hour and a half, an American older than 65 takes his or her life. Victims are almost always white men. Firearms tend to be their method.
As one expert told national lawmakers in September, compared with average citizens, men older than 85 are five times more likely to kill themselves.
And unlike suicide attempts by the young, death occurs more often when the elderly try to end their lives. One of every 200 suicide attempts by youths ends in death , according to the California-based Institute on Aging. For seniors, one out of every four attempts is fatal.
Still, not all recent statistics spell gloom. (...)
Suicide leaves survivors with grief, unanswered questions
tribune-chronicle.com 19.11.2006
(...) Eighty-six Americans commit suicide in the United States every day, or about one person every 17 minutes. And each one of those deaths, according to research from the American Association of Suicidology, affects at least six other people.
In Trumbull County alone, the 35 recorded suicides so far in 2006 is outpacing recent years and is fast approaching the seven-year high of 36 in 1999.
Both mothers say they beat themselves up during the struggle to cope with their children’s death, asking themselves why they couldn’t detect the despair, why Michael or Valerie didn’t seek their help and just, why. (...)
New look at anti-depressant/suicide risk
upi.com 14.11.2006
-- The National Institute of Mental Health is funding a variety of new research projects that hope to shed light on the possible link between a particular type of anti-depressant medication and suicidality.
"This study is really a combination of studies looking at kids, adults and the elderly. It would be very helpful if we could learn more about the sets of subgroups that are at risk for this problem," said Dr. Jane Pearson, acting deputy director of the Division of Services and Intervention Research at the NIMH. (...)
Suicide is not painless
zwire.com 11.10.2006
(...) A commonality shared between young and older adults who may be contemplating suicide is the pain they feel.
"Pain is such a huge issue," Jennifer Marshall, the Delaware County Office of Services for the Aging, said. She shared the link of medical conditions with the prevalence of suicide, such as those who have diabetes with complications are 70 percent more likely to commit suicide.
This is also shared with younger people.
"Typically, a person who is suicidal is in pain," Dr. David Ramirez, Swarthmore College’s director of psychology services, said. "I think the challenge ..is being able to listen." (...)
Antidepressants Lower Kids' Suicide Risk, New Research Finds
theledger.com 7.11.2006
The debate about how antidepressants might affect suicide risk in children and adolescents just got murkier.
Spurred by reports of suicidality in pediatric antidepressant users, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration two years ago slapped a "black box" warning on popular selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor drugs, or SSRIs, such as the brands Celexa, Paxil, Prozac and Zoloft, warning of the possible risk. (...)
The finding "is not a surprise," says Dr. Grant Mitchell, chief of psychiatry at Northern Westchester Hospital in Mt. Kisco, N.Y. "There is a much greater risk of suicide in patients who are depressed and untreated than there is from the use of SSRIs in terms of side effects." (...)
Alcohol deaths double since 1991
bbc.co.uk 7.11.2006
The gap between the sexes has widened
Alcohol-related death rates have almost doubled since 1991 in the UK and continue to rise, government statistics have revealed.
In 1991, the number of alcohol-related deaths stood at 4,144, while in 2005 the number leapt to 8,386, the Office for National Statistics said.
A small rise of 165 alcohol deaths was seen between 2004 and 2005.
The analysis also revealed alcohol death rates were much higher for men than for women.
It also showed the gap between the sexes had widened in recent years.
In 2005, the male death rate was 17.9 deaths per 100,000 of the population, compared with 8.3 deaths per 100,000 for females. (...)
Poor readers more likely to consider suicide
dailytimes.com 7.11.2006
Teens who can’t read well may also be at high risk for suicide, a new study warns.
They’re also more likely than other kids their age to drop out of school, say researchers at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Centre, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
“In our study, poor readers were three times more likely than typical readers to consider or attempt suicide, and six times more likely to drop out of school,” the study’s lead author Stephanie Sergent Daniel said. (...)
Japan suicides down as economy improves
theage.com.au 3.11.2006
The number of Japanese who committed suicide fell by nearly eight per cent in the first half of this year, government data showed, a drop one official said reflected the improving economy. (...)
Flere selvmord enn først antatt
nrk.no 3.11.2006
Ni av 62 som døde i trafikken i region øst i fjor, har vist seg å være selvmord.
Den offisielle statistikken viser at to av 62 trafikkofre i Region øst i 2005 tok sitt eget liv. Ulykkesanalysesarbeidet til Staten vegvesen har økt tallet til ni, skriver vegvesenets avis «Vegen og vi». (...)
Suicide Data Counter Claims Of Antidepressant Link
Psychiatr News November 3, 2006
Volume 41, Number 21, page 8
© 2006 American Psychiatric Association
Researchers are questioning the factors driving down suicide rates among youth and elderly Americans but note that the lower suicide rates coincided with increased use of antidepressants. (...)
Suicides down in Japan as economy improves
alertnet.org 2.11.2006
TOKYO, Nov 2 (Reuters) - The number of Japanese who committed suicide fell by nearly 8 percent in the first half of this year, government data showed on Thursday, a drop one official said reflected the improving economy.
A total of 14,828 people committed suicide from January to June, down from 16,082 in the same period of 2005, data from the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare showed. (...)
Alcohol now Finland's top killer
bbc.co.uk 1.11.2006
(...) Alcohol has become the leading cause of death in Finland for men, and is a close second for women, a study says.
Figures for 2005 released by the state statistics agency showed alcohol killed more people aged 15 to 64 than cardiovascular disease or cancer.
Almost as many women died of alcohol-related causes as breast cancer last year. (...)
Child Suicide: No Antidepressant Link?
webmd.com 1.11.2006
Study Links Low Child Suicide Rate to High Overall Antidepressant Use
-- A new study questions whether giving antidepressant drugs to children really increases their risk of suicide. (...)
The study's methods are controversial. It doesn't look at whether children who did or didn't kill themselves actually took antidepressants. It simply looks at the number of SSRI prescriiptions written for every outpatient -- regardless of age -- in every county in the U.S. Then it compares this prescriiption rate to the number of child suicides in each county. (...)
It's not proof. But it's reassuring all the same, says study researcher Robert D. Gibbons, PhD, professor of psychiatry and director of the Center for Health Statistics at the University of Illinois at Chicago. (...)
Gibbons and colleagues report their findings in the November issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry. (...)
"These studies don't prove to us that prescribing more antidepressants reduces suicide risk -- but as rates of antidepressant use have gone up, we don't see that rates of suicide have gone up at the same time," Simon tells WebMD. "So there is some reassurance, at least, that we are not creating a big suicide problem by prescribing these drugs." (...)
ANTI-DEPRESSANTS MAY INCREASE RISK OF CHILD SUICIDE, SAY RESEARCHERS
THISISLONDON.CO.UK 1.11.2006
Children who take antidepressants run a higher risk of self-harm and attempting suicide, says new research.
The findings from a study of almost 3,000 children - some as young as six - will reinforce warnings to doctors not to prescribe medication to youngsters. (...)
Anti-Depressant Feature: Woman killed herself weeks after taking drug
huntspost.co.uk 1.11.2006
Janice and John's story
JANICE'S husband John, a lorry driver, and his first wife (who he does not wish to name) were having problems with their marriage in 1991 and went to the doctor to seek counselling.
Janice said: "Their GP said you will wait a year for that, and he put them both on Prozac. His wife went back within a week saying 'I feel like a zombie' but the doctor said it was just early days and she should keep on taking the tablets. She tried to kill herself twice in three weeks and she succeeded the third time." (...)
New Figures Show Suicide Rate Continues To Fall In UK
medicalnewstoday.com 28.10.2006
A new guide was published recently, giving advice on how to prevent suicides at local 'hotspots', such as railway bridges or cliffs. The guide, produced by the Department of Health, provides advice on how to identify potential hotspots and suggests measures, such as installing telephone helplines, to deter people who want to kill themselves. (...)
Mange alkohol-dødsfall i Finland...
nrk.no/teksttv 27.10.2006
I Finland er skader forårsaket av alkohol den viktigste dødsårsaken. Det fremgår av et nyhetsbrev fra Nordisk ministerråd, skriver Jyllands-Posten.
I nyhetsbrevet står det også at senkede alkoholpriser i Finland har ført til mer fyll.
I tiden etter at prisene ble satt ned har også familievolden økt kraftig, og 20-30 prosent av barn i hovedstaden bor i hjem der vold og misbruk er vanlig.
Alkoholpolitikk i de nordiske landene står på dagsorden i rådets neste møte. (...)
Alarm i Finland: Stadig flere drikker seg i hjel
aftenposten.no 31.10.2005
(...) Alkoholpolitikken i Norden er også til debatt under Nordisk Råds sesjon i København 30. oktober – 2. november. Velferdspolitikken i de nordiske landene blir en viktig del av generaldebatten i år.
Les alle artiklene: http://www.analysnorden.org/analysnorden/default.asp
Läs mer om Nordiska rådets session: http://www.norden.org
Billig alkohol sätter fula spår
analysnorden.org 25.10.2006
Det är inte bara en myt att finnarna inte tål sprit. Sedan alkoholskatten sjönk radikalt år 2004 har alkoholkonsumtionen ökat drastiskt och samtidigt även de skador som drickandet medför. Framför allt har många missgynnade familjer blivit än mer utslagna i och med att det finländska välfärdssamhället delar sig i en framgångsrik majoritet och en allt mer förfördelad minoritet. (...)
Online gambling fuels addicts, suicide conference told
cbc.ca 27.10.2006
Unregulated internet gambling is simply adding to the growing problem of addiction, delegates attending the Canadian Association of Suicide Prevention conference in Toronto were told this week.
An estimated 200 compulsive gamblers commit suicide in Canada every year, said Terry Flynn, a director of spiritual care at the Bellwood Health Services facility in Toronto.
The growth of gambling on the internet, where no regulations exist, is making the problem worse, Flynn said. (...)
Suicide in recently released prisoners
The Lancet 2006; 368:1492-1493
Media coverage of murders and suicides seen as sensational
gov.tw 26.10.2006
Media sensationalism in reporting murder and suicide cases in Taiwan during the past several months may have created a "copycat effect" and unknowingly "taught" more "disturbed" parents how to kill their children and themselves, according to an analysis released by the Broadcasting Development Fund on Wednesday. (...)
Should Bridges Be Suicideproof?
boston.com 22.10.2006
WHY BARRIERS TO JUMPERS MIGHT MAKE THE PROBLEM WORSE. (...)
Barriers, I fear, simply push the problem elsewhere, making it less visible but not less likely. The lesson I draw from the Tobin experience is that, instead of money for fences, perhaps it would be better to spend our resources on surveillance and response. Such an effort probably wouldn't stop all who try to jump, but those it prevented might find their lives truly saved. (...)
Law on tablets reduces suicides
timesonline.co.uk 22.10.2006
THE number of paracetamol tablets taken in deliberate overdoses has fallen significantly since supermarkets and convenience stores were banned from selling packets of 24, writes Jan Battles. (...)
Drought forces up Australian farmer suicides
scotsman.com 19.10.2006
Australia: Farmes are committing suicide at the rate of one every four days, defeated by the country's worst drought in 100 years which has left them with a mountain of debt, says a national mental health body.
The drought is now entering its sixth year. (...)
'Cosmetic Surgery Boom Linked To Suicides'
lse.co.uk 19.10.2006
The boom in cosmetic surgery may be sparking an alarming increase in suicides, scientists fear.
The quest for the body beautiful has gone mainstream as record numbers of people turn to the knife in a bid to become more attractive, a report reveals. (...)
Kreftpasienter begår oftere selvmord
aftenposten.no 19.10.2006
Risikoen for selvmord er dobbelt så høy blant kreftpasienter som hos andre, viser en canadisk undersøkelse. (...)
Risikoen for selvmord øker med to til to og en halv gang blant kreftpasienter, noe leger og sykepleiere må ta på alvor, konkluderer undersøkelsen som er utført av dr. Wayne Kendal ved Ottawa Hospital Regional Cancer Centre. (...)
Cancer patients have higher suicide risk: study
reuters.com 18.10.2006
TORONTO (Reuters) - Cancer patients have a two to 2-1/2 times greater risk of committing suicide than the general population, and doctors and nurses should take heed of the risk, a study by a Canadian oncologist said on Wednesday.
The study was done by Dr. Wayne Kendal, a radiation oncologist at the Ottawa Hospital Regional Cancer Center, based on an analysis of 1.3 million cancer cases in the United States. His analysis showed that 19 out of every 1,000 males with cancer and four out of every 1,000 females with cancer take their own lives.
That equates to around 24 suicides per 100,000 cancer patients per year. The general American population, including the cancer population, has a much lower rate of 10.6 suicides per 100,000 people per year, Kendal said. (...)
Number of suicides drop in Czech Republic
praguemonitor.co 14.10.2006
Prague, Oct 14 (CTK) - The number of suicides has been gradually dropping in the Czech Republic and now makes up 1.5 percent of all deaths, according to statistical data released by the Czech Statistical Office (CSU) on its website. (...)
Suicides may rise
news.com.au 12.10.2006
THE Government has warned that the devastating drought gripping the country could increase the suicide rate among desperate farmers.
Parliamentary Secretary for Health and Ageing Christopher Pyne said today that the drought was putting pressure on rural families. (...)
SUICIDES IN CHILE DOUBLE
tcgnews.com 13.10.2006
The number of suicides in Chile doubled over the past decade, according to a recent study by the Psychiatry, Neurology, and Neurosurgery Society (SSNN).
This same group also expressed alarm that during the next six months an estimated 800,000 Chileans will suffer from depression.
“What we are seeing in Chile is the exactly what has happened in other developing countries over the last 45 years,” said Pedro Retamal of the SSNN. “Rapid economic growth has caused vast improvements in living conditions, but at the cost of increasing competitiveness, stress, work hours, and professional and student demands.” (...)
Hver tredje selvmordspatient bliver svigtet
netdoktor.com 13.10.2006
Selv om patienterne har forsøgt at tage deres eget liv, så er det ikke sikkert, at de bliver tilset af en psykiater.
En undersøgelse fra sygehuset i Glostrup viser, at en stor del af de selvmordstruede patienter ikke får hjælp fra en psykiater efter at de er blevet indlagt. Ifølge morgenavisen 24 timer blev der i løbet fem måneder sidste år indlagt 52 personer, der havde skader efter at have prøvet at begå selvmord.
18 af dem blev ikke tilset af en psykiater, viser en undersøgelse. (...)
One million suicides worldwide every year
independent.com 11.10.2006
Suicide is the third major cause of death for people aged between 15 and 44 years, said Health, Elderly and Community Care Minister Louis Deguara yesterday.
Dr Deguara was speaking at a seminar organised by the Richmond Foundation to mark World Mental Health Day, celebrated yesterday.
The theme, chosen by the World Health Organisation this year, is Building Awareness – Reducing Risk: Mental Illness and Suicide.
In Europe, the suicide rate varies from 44 out of 100,000 people in Lithuania to 3.6 out of 100,000 in Greece. (...)
According to WHO, 50 per cent of those who commit suicide suffer from alcohol and drug abuse, and 90 per cent of these suffer from depression.
Minister Deguara pointed out that depression is the main common factor that leads to suicide and added that the government is committed to launch new prevention services and cures for adolescents suffering from depression. (...)
“There are more people dying as a result of suicides than through wars, murders and terrorist attacks put together,” said Mrs D’Amato. She added that the WHO campaign will help to overcome the mistaken idea that mental health problems are secondary to other health problems. (...)
Psychiatrist wants suicide attempt decriminalised in Ghana
angolapress-angop.ao 11.10.2006
Accra, Ghana, 10/11 - With tongues wagging about the increasing rate of suicide attempts, Ghana`s top mental doctors are calling for the decriminalising of suicide attempts. Instead, such cases should be referred to the psychiatrists or psychologists.
Dr Akwasi Osei, acting Chief Psychiatrist noted that suicide was increasingly becoming a major hazard contributing to the enormous mental illness experienced not only in Ghana but also worldwide. (...)
Rising suicides worry psychiatrists
thejakartapost.com 11.10.2006
Hera Diani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Medical experts warned Tuesday that Indonesia's rising suicide rate was representative of the declining level of mental health in the country. (...)
Mixing emotions with suicide
jamaica-gleaner.com 11.10.2006
Contrary to the general perception, Jamaica's suicide rate is among the lowest in the world. Data from the Ministry of Health indicate a range of between 2.1 and 3 per 100,000 over the last five years. (...)
High Suicide Risk Found for Patients With Head and Neck Cancer
JAMA 2006;296:1716-1717 (October 11)
Chicago—Traditional treatment regimens and limited interventional therapies for patients with head and neck cancer (HNC) have led to unanticipated social and psychological problems for such individuals, including a dramatic increase in the risk of suicide, according to experts gathered at the American Head and Neck Society's annual meeting here in August. (...)
Most Suicide Rates Decline, But Findings Are Puzzling
medicalnewstoday.com 8.10.2006
First, the good news: Suicide rates among younger and older Americans have been declining since the early 1990s. Now, the puzzling news: No one really knows why.
Those are the findings of a study conducted by researchers at the University of South Carolina and released Thursday (Sept. 28) in the October issue of the American Journal of Public Health. (...)
Selvmordsforsøk forandrer ikke livet
nrk.no 9.10.2006
Et selvmordsforsøk vil ikke forandre livet. Tvert imot kan det bli enda vanskeligere å takle hverdagen etterpå. (...)
Cultural factors behind suicides among UK-based Indians: Study
zeenews.com 7.10.2006
Chennai, Oct 07: Cultural factors could be the reason for "high prevalence of suicidal tendencies" among UK-based Indians, a study done by the Royal College of Psychiatry in UK has claimed.
"The highest rates of suicides in the United Kingdom were recorded among South Asian women," Dinesh Bhugra, Dean of the college, told a press conference organised by Sneha, a voluntary organisation working at preventing suicides here.
Quoting statistics from certain studies done at the college, he said "Indian doctors, including dentists, living there resorted to such brutal ways of killing themselves like setting themselves ablaze".
On the cultural factor, he claimed there was a disparity between the joint family set up among Indians prevalent in several parts of England and the environment in schools and workplace, which caused emotional trauma. (...)
Adolescent suicide in the Middle East: ostrich head in sand
- Mustafa Afifi
(...) Bulletin of the World Health Organization 2006, 84 (10) (October)
Finally, not all suicides are associaated with depression. For example,
in Alexandria, adolescents’ aggression predicted suicide ideation and intent.2 There are, hypothetically at least, two types of suicidal behaviour most commmon during adolescence: a wish to die (depression) and a wish not to be here for a time (impulse control).8 (...)
SUICIDE TOLL FALLS
dailyrecord.co.uk 4.10.2006
SUICIDES by Scottish men have dropped by more than 20 per cent over the past three years.
The rate has also fallen for women, with a drop of five per cent.
In the last 30 years, Scottish male suicides rose by 50 per cent while the female rate is almost double the UK average.
The Executive said suicides have fallen since the 2002 launch of the Choose Life scheme. (...)
Concern over suicide in young females
irishhealth.com 29.9.2006
Concern has been expressed about the increasing number of young Irish women who have died as a result of suicide in recent years.
Speaking at the annual conference of the Irish Association of Suicidology (IAS), Fine Gael TD, Dan Neville, who is also president of the association, said that while the total rate of female suicide has remained 'fairly constant since 1990', the rate among young women has soared. (...)
Female suicides have trebled since 1990
THE number of young women committing suicide has trebled since 1990, a conference heard yesterday.
The vast increase in suicide among women aged 15-24 years was highlighted at the 11th Annual Conference of the Irish Association of Suicidology (IAS), by President Dan Neville.
Describing female suicide as "complex and challenging", Mr Neville said that alcohol and binge-drinking in particular, coupled with a more violent and far less cohesive society were all contributory factors.
In 1980, the Irish female suicide rate was two deaths per 100,000. This remained relatively stable until 1992 when there was a marked increase. By 2001 the figure was seven per 100,000.
”Vellykket” hjem gir økt selvmordsrisiko
Tidsskr Nor Lægeforen (29.9.2006)
Det er dobbelt så stor risiko for at kvinner som har vokst opp i velstående hjem begår selvmord, som at kvinner som har foreldrene med lav inntekt og grunnskoleutdanning gjør det.
Det viser en norsk studie publisert i Social Science & Medicine. Bjørn Heine Strand ved Folkehelseinstituttet og professor Anton Kunst ved Erasmus Medical Center i Rotterdam har fulgt over 600 000 norske kvinner og menn i alderen 25-35 år fra 1990-2001 ved hjelp av data fra Dødsårsaksregisteret og Folke- og boligtellingene. (...)
Høy status gir flere selvmord
dagbladet.no 28.9.2006
Det er første gang i Norge at forskere har sett på forholdet mellom sosial status i barndommen og selvmordsrisiko i voksen alder.
Resultatene viser at kvinner mellom 25-35 år som har vokst opp i hjem hvor foreldrene har statusyrker, høy inntekt eller høy utdanning, har høyere selvmordsrisiko enn kvinner fra hjem der foreldrene har lav inntekt og grunnskoleutdanning.
- Dette er uavhengig av kvinnens sosiale status som voksen, sier en av forskerne bak studien, Bjørn Heine Strand, direktør i Avdeling for helsestatistikk, Divisjon for epidemiologi ved Nasjonalt folkehelseinstitutt. (...)
Resultatene er nylig publisert i tidsskriftet Social Science & Medicine. (...)
Rise in suicide by hanging
theaustralian.news.com 18.9.2006
THE number of Australians taking their own lives each year has plunged by more than 600 - but suicide by hanging has risen as a proportion of total deaths.
The figures emerged yesterday as psychiatrists pleaded for more spending on mental health in prisons, warning that many people released from psychiatric institutions recently had turned up in jails. (...)
An epidemic of doc suicides
suntimes.com 5.9.2006
(...) Harvard University researchers who compiled the results of 25 suicide studies concluded that male doctors are 1.4 times more likely than the general population to commit suicide, and female doctors are 2.3 times more likely. (...)
As far back as 1858, doctors in England observed that physicians had high suicide rates. But only recently have suicide experts begun to raise the alarm. (...)
Doctors have ready access to potentially lethal drugs, and their suicide attempts are more likely to succeed. For example, among all women, only one out of every 10 or 15 suicide attempts is successful. But among female doctors, there are more successful suicide attempts than unsuccessful ones. (...)
- Selvmord tar flere liv enn krig og drap
aftenposten.no 8.9.2006
Flere dør hvert år av selvmord enn av krig, terror og drap til sammen, hevder to eksperter på området fredag. (...)
(Anm: Press release. World Suicide Prevention Day 2006 Held on Sept 10th.)
Ifølge Dr. Jose Manoel Bertolote i Verdens helseorganisasjon forsøker mellom 20 og 60 millioner å ta sitt eget liv hvert år. Bare rundt én million lykkes.
- For dem som tar sitt liv er dette tragiske situasjoner hvor hjelp kunne blitt gitt, sa Brian Mishara, president i den internasjonale foreningen for selvmordsforebygging. (...)
De mener selvmordstallene kunne blitt kraftig redusert om verdens land var flinkere til å begrense tilgjengeligheten av gift, våpen og medikamenter. (...)
More People Die From Suicides Than Wars And Murders
allheadlinenews.com 8.9.2006
(...) According to Bertolote, about 30 percent of suicides worldwide are a result of pesticides.
Dentists, veterinarians and doctors are considered high risk because they have access to deadly chemicals and know how to use them. (...)
UN urges prevention of 1 million deaths by suicide a year 's New This Week
rawstory.com 8.9.2006
- Health organizations said Friday that mental illness is the leading cause of more than 1 million suicide deaths a year - a number even higher than the combined fatalities from conflicts and natural disasters. Those organizations, which include the World Health Organization (WHO) and Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), called on governments to show political resolve in improving health care systems to prevent suicide.
On October 10, the UN plans to hold its 14th annual World Mental Health Day, which will gather over 100 countries to conduct public awareness, education and advocacy events to prevent suicides.
Health officials said depression and schizophrenia are the two most serious mental illnesses that lead to suicide in both poor and rich countries.
WHO said 90 per cent of suicides resulted from a mental illness, or abuse of alcohol or drugs. (...)
Selvmord etter fengselsopphold
Tidsskr Nor Lægeforen 2006; 126 (7.9.2006)
Personer som nylig er sluppet ut fra fengsel har økt risiko for å begå selvmord. En studie fra Storbritannia viser at forekomsten det første året etter løslatelse er økt åtte ganger hos menn og hele 35 ganger hos kvinner i forhold til raten i befolkningen for øvrig (Lancet 2006; 368: 119 - 23). Den økte forekomsten gjaldt alle aldersgrupper. De fleste selvmordene skjedde i løpet av de første ukene i frihet.
Innsatte har mer rusproblemer og høyere forekomst av psykiske lidelser enn andre. Tallene er derfor ikke overraskende, men forfatterne peker på ansvaret som fengselsmyndighetene og sosial- og helsevesenet har for å forhindre selvmord blant nylig løslatte. (...)
Det uforklarlige selvmordet
aftenposten.no 5.9.2006
VIGDIS SONGE-MØLLER, Professor i filosofi, Universitetet i Bergen
(...) Ikke psykisk lidelse.
Blant forskere er det en viss uenighet om hvor mange prosent av selvmordene som ikke skyldes psykisk lidelse. De fleste hevder 10 %, andre 20 %, mens andre hevder det er noe mer.
Det betyr at det i Norge, hvor det begås mellom 500 og 600 selvmord i året, kan være mellom 50 og 150 mennesker som årlig tar sitt liv av andre grunner enn psykisk sykdom. Disse ser ikke ut til å ha noen særlig plass i den dominerende psykiatriske diskursen. Det er min opplevelse at de blir tabuisert. (...)
Depression Weighs Heaviest on the Elderly
paktribune.com 26.8.2006
ISLAMABAD: As crippling as depression can be for young and middle-age adults, it’s truly severe in the elderly, and more often fatal.
And while depression and related illnesses afflict 20 percent of America’s elderly, only a fraction are getting the treatment they need.
"Depression kills not just through suicide," says Barry Lebowitz, director of treatment research at the National Institute of Mental Health. "[Elderly] people can be so debilitated by depression that they are not managing their hypertension or diabetes or they are not eating right. People die from the sort of excess disability that is created by depression in the context of other diseases." (...)
Suicide-Prevention Tactics Promising, But Lack Data
Psychiatr News, 2006:41(15):5 (August 4)
There are a number of initiatives school administrators can adopt to help decrease suicides among teens, but experts say that strong, proven links to their efficacy are yet to be identified. (...)
Suicide admissions rise, but deaths fall
stuff.co.nz 2.8.2006
Fewer people are dying by their own hand but more are ending up in hospital after attempting suicide, new figures show.
Suicide Trends, released by the Health Ministry yesterday, details patterns in suicide and attempts over the 20 years from 1983 to 2003.
While self-inflicted deaths rose from 465 in 2002 to 526 in 2003, three-yearly averages show suicide death rates have dropped by 15 per cent since the mid to late 1990s.
However, the number of people being admitted to hospital for suicide attempts has increased nearly 24 per cent since the mid-1980s. (...)
- Best til å forebygge selvmord
helserevyen.no 21.7.2006
Mental Helse mener de frivillige organisasjonene og de pårørende må trekkes inn i arbeidet med å forebygge selvmord. (...)
Suicide in recently released prisoners: a population-based cohort study
Lancet 2006; 368:119-123
(...) Interpretation
Recently released prisoners are at a much greater risk of suicide than the general population, especially in the first few weeks after release. The risk of suicide in recently released prisoners is approaching that seen in discharged psychiatric patients. A shared responsibility lies with the prison, probation, health, and social services to develop more collaborative practices in providing services for this high-risk group. (...)
Selvmordsbølge blant bomullsdyrkere
dn.no 2.7.2006
Ni tusen indiske bomullsdyrkere har begått selvmord som følge av lave bomullspriser. Nå kommer staten med krisepakke. (...)
kal hindre masseselvmord
na24.no 1.7.2006
I India har tusenvis av bønder begått selvmord som følge av gjeld. Nå gis millioner for å holde dem i live.
I India er det mange tusen bønder som sliter med enorm gjeld i forhold til deres inntektsgrunnlag. Dette har ført til at mange tusen har begått selvmord i ren desperasjon ettersom de ikke klarer å betale den tilbake. (...)
Amerikanske forskere: Lykkepiller redder liv
berlingske.dk 16.6.2006
Lykkepiller bliver sat i forbindelse med forøget risiko for selvmord. Men i en ny undersøgelse når forskere frem til, at lykkepiller ser ud til at redde langt flere menneskeliv, end de tager.
Selvom lykkepiller forøger risikoen for selvmord, så forebygger de formentligt flere selvmord, end de forårsager. Sådan lyder budskabet fra amerikanske forskere, der i en ny undersøgelse ser nærmere på, i hvilket omfang forbruget af de såkaldte SSRI-piller har påvirket omfanget af selvmord i USA i årene 1988-2002. (...)
I en kommenterende artikel i Public Library of Science Medicine advarer australske psykiatere mod at forbinde færre selvmord med flere lykkepiller.
Det samme gør psykiatriprofessor Lars Kessing fra Rigshospitalet.
»Jeg mener, man bør være meget forsigtig med at konkludere, at fordi der bliver solgt mere medicin, så er der færre selvmord,« siger han og tilføjer, at der kan være mange andre forklaringer på udviklingen i antallet af selvmord. (...)
SSRI Antidepressants Have Slashed Suicides, Study Finds
foxnews.com 13.6.2006
Antidepressants Linked to Decline in Suicides
Far from increasing suicide risk, SSRI antidepressants have saved thousands of lives since they became available in the U.S. in the late 1980s, according to findings from a new study.
Researchers estimate that after the availability of the new generation of drugs for depression, there were 33,600 fewer suicide deaths than would have otherwise been expected between 1988 and 2002. They use mathematical probability modeling to come up with the figure.
Researcher Julio Licinio, MD, who led the study while at UCLA, is now chairman of the department of psychiatry and behavioral science at the University of Miami’s Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine.
“The overall message is that on a population level these drugs are safe,” he tells WebMD. “They have been prescribed in huge numbers and suicides have been going down.”
Fourteen-Year Decline
The study joins a growing body of research challenging claims that the widely-prescribed selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressants are linked to an increased risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviors.
Researchers analyzed suicide data from the CDC and the U.S. Census Bureau from the early 1960s until 2002. They looked at deaths from suicides and did not include suicidal behaviors or suicidal feelings or thoughts in their analysis.
They found that while suicide rates remained fairly steady for the 15 years prior to introduction of Prozac (fluoxetine) in 1988, they dropped steadily over the next 14 years as sales of the drug increased.
Prozac was the first SSRI antidepressant to be sold in the U.S. and it is still the most widely prescribed antidepressant. Sales of Prozac skyrocketed from 2.5 million prescriiptions in 1988 to around 33 million in 2002.
The study reports that between 12.7 and 13.7 suicides occurred among every 100,000 people in the U.S. from the early 1960s until 1988. Suicides steadily declined after that to a low of 10.4 per 100,000 in 2000.
Licinio and colleagues developed a mathematical model designed to estimate the impact of SSRI use on suicides. Based on suicide figures prior to the introduction of the antidepressants, the researchers concluded that there was a cumulative decrease in expected suicides of 33,600 from 1988 through 2002.
Early Monitoring Important
While the findings suggest SSRI use has resulted in a decrease in suicides among the population at large, they say nothing about whether the drugs pose a risk for specific subpopulations of users.
Seattle-based psychiatrist Gregory E. Simon, MD, MPH, tells WebMD that it would take much larger studies than are likely to be performed to answer that question. Simon is a researcher for Group Health Cooperative, a nonprofit private insurer in the Pacific Northwest.
Other studies have suggested that if there is an increase in suicide risk associated with SSRI use, it is greatest in the early days and weeks of treatment. For that reason, the FDA has called for close monitoring of newly-treated patients.
Simon agrees that close monitoring is important -- but not because the antidepressants are dangerous. Rather, it is important, he says, because finding an antidepressant that works often takes time.
“Unfortunately, many people who start taking these drugs stop within a week or so because they don’t seem to be working,” Simon says.
Careful early monitoring could boost the effectiveness of antidepressant treatments from 40 percent to 50 percent up to around 75 percent, he says.
Closer monitoring of patients when they start SSRIs is a positive outcome of the suicide-risk controversy, Licinio says.
“It used to be that people were put on these drugs and told to come back in a few months, but that is not happening so much anymore,” Licinio says. “These drugs do change mood and behavior among very vulnerable people, so close monitoring is important.”
By Salynn Boyles, reviewed by Louise Chang, MD
SOURCES: Milane, M.S. PLoS Medicine, June 2006; vol. 3: online edition. Julio Licinio, MD, chairman, department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine, Miami. Gregory E. Simon, MD, MPH, psychiatrist and researcher, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. (...)
Study questions if drugs raise suicide risk
reuters.com 12.6.2006
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A study raises questions about whether newer antidepressant drugs raise the risk of suicide as some studies have suggested by finding that suicide rates have dropped in the United States since the drugs were introduced, researchers said on Monday.
In fact, the use of the new SSRI antidepressants to treat depression has saved more than 30,000 lives, according to the study published in the journal Public Library of Science Medicine.
"Our findings certainly suggest that the introduction of SSRIs has contributed to reduction of suicide rates in the United States," Dr. Julio Licinio of the University of Miami said in a statement.
"However, the findings do not preclude the possibility of increased risk of suicide among small populations of individuals," Licinio added.
Millions of Americans use antidepressants, which include Pfizer Inc.'s Zoloft, GlaxoSmithKline Plc's Paxil and Eli Lilly and Co.'s Prozac.
Prozac, or fluoxetine, was the first SSRI, which stands for selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration introduced "black box warnings" on the most popular SSRIs in 2004 after studies in the United States and Britain suggested the drugs may raise the risk of suicide in children and adults.
"Although the current issue concerning antidepressants and suicidality requires further examination, we believe that many more lives have been saved than lost since the advent of these drugs," the researchers wrote.
Licinio's team studied federal data to show the U.S. suicide rate held steady for 15 years prior to the introduction of Prozac in 1988, then dropped steadily over 14 years as sales of the antidepressant rose. The research team found the strongest effect among women.
Mathematical modeling of probable suicide rates from 1988 to 2002, based on pre-1988 data, suggests 33,600 fewer people have committed suicide since Prozac hit the market, Licinio said.
The actual suicide rates fluctuated between 12.2 and 13.7 suicides per 100,000 people until 1988, and then gradually fell to the lowest 10.4 per 100,000 in 2000, Licinio's team reported.
During that time prescriiptions of fluoxetine ballooned from about 2.5 million in 1988 to more than 33 million in 2002.
"Much of the psychiatric community fears that the absence of treatment may prove more harmful to depressed individuals than the effects of the drugs themselves," said Licinio, who did the study while at the University of California Los Angeles.
"Most people who commit suicide suffer from untreated depression." (...)
APA: Female Suicides in U.S. Split Between Poison and Guns
medpagetoday.com 22.5.2006
Note that this study suggests there are national variations in the rates and methods women use to commit suicide, and knowledge of those variations may be useful for clinicians attempting to treat suicidal women.
This study was published as an abstract and presented orally at a conference. These data and conclusions should be considered to be preliminary as they have not yet been reviewed and published in a peer-reviewed publication. (...)
Uproar Over Film of Golden Gate Suicides
latimes.com 28.4.2006
A documentary that records almost two dozen leaps from the landmark bridge has generated praise and scorn for its maker. (...)
Raser mot selvmordsfilm
dagbladet.no 28.4.2006
Rundt 1300 mennesker har tatt livene sine ved å hoppe fra Golden Gate Bridge. Eric Steel filmet 20 av dem. (...)
Fler rapporterade självmord avslöjar bristande samarbete
dagensmedicin.se 29.3.2006
Ett kraftigt ökat antal anmälningar om självmord inom vården avslöjar brister i samarbetet mellan den psykiatriska slutenvården och öppenvården.
Sedan den 1 juli i fjol har sjukvården gjort 84 lex Maria-anmälningar om självmord i samband med vård. Det är en kraftig ökning jämfört med tidigare år. Under 2004 gjordes 56 sådana anmälningar och under hela fjolåret 77 stycken.
Sedan Socialstyrelsen aviserade ändrade föreskrifter, som innebär en skärpning av anmälningsplikten av självmord, har sjukvården börjat anmäla i allt högre grad. Föreskriften började gälla den 1 februari i år, och gäller all sjukvård. Den säger att anmälan ska göras om patientens självmord sker i samband med vård eller upp till två veckor efter vårdtillfället.
Därför kommer nu även anmälningar från hemsjukvården och somatiska kliniker. Den utökade anmälningsplikten innebär att Socialstyrelsen nu får kännedom om flera självmord som annars inte skulle ha rapporterats.
Hittills har Socialstyrelsen fattat beslut i 20 av de 84 lex Maria-ärenden om suicid som anmälts från i somras och fram till i slutet av förra veckan. Dagens Medicin har läst 16av besluten.
Brister i journalföringen
I flera fall får sjukvården kritik för brister i framför allt journalföring och adekvat bedömning av patientens suicidrisk. Socialstyrelsen påpekar att sjukvården ska ta olika skattningsskalor till hjälp för att öka precisionen i bedömningen av risken för självmordsförsök. Samarbetet mellan slutenvård och öppenvård är ett annat återkommande problem. Här krävs att verksamheterna ser över de rutiner som finns för samverkan. Dessutom behöver de olika verksamheterna enkelt kunna ta del av varandras journaler.
I ett fall har patienten kort efter utskrivning från psykiatrisk klinik ringt till en psykiatrisk jourmottagning där sjuksköterskan inte hade tillgång till patientens journal och därmed hade knapphändiga uppgifter. Sjuksköterskan upplyste patienten om att det var tveksamt om hon skulle få komma till mottagningen eftersom hon hade druckit alkohol. Kort efter samtalet med jourmottagningen tog patienten sitt liv. Socialstyrelsen ifrågasätter i sitt beslut lämpligheten i att avvisa alkoholpåverkade patienter.
Kartläggning påbörjas senare i år
12 av de 16 fall som Dagens Medicin har granskat gäller självmord utanför sjukhuset eller behandlingshemmets lokaler. De har ofta skett i samband med permission eller i anslutning till att patienterna har haft någon form av kontakt med sjukvården, blivit utskriven eller har en tid bokad för återbesök. I 9 av de 16 besluten undgår sjukvården kritik från Socialstyrelsen.
Gun Johansson, handläggare vid Socialstyrelsens tillsynsenhet i Örebro, är en av dem som propagerar starkast för att all sjukvård ska anmäla självmord.
- Det behövs en ökad uppmärksamhet på dessa patienter inom sjukvården som helhet. Den utvidgade anmälningsskyldigheten visar att sjukvårdens olika verksamheter behöver bli bättre på att samarbeta om patienter med suicidrisk, säger hon.
Socialstyrelsen kommer senare i år att börja en kartläggning av vad den nya föreskriften har inneburit. (...)
Høy selvmordsrisiko blant leger og sykepleiere
helserevyen.no 27.4.2006
Leger og sykepleiere er blant de yrkesgruppene som er mest utsatt for selvmord i Norge. Forebygging krever at noen ser signalene når kolleger sliter med selvmordstanker på jobben.
Hvert år velger opp mot 600 mennesker å ta sitt eget liv i Norge. De yrkesgruppene som er mest utsatt er leger, sykepleiere, veterinærer, skogsarbeidere og politifolk, ifølge stami.no.
- Det er flere årsaker til dette, men psykiske belastninger i arbeidet kan være en årsak. Eksempler på dette kan være tungt ansvar, vanskelige avgjørelser, uløselige konflikter, stadige omstillinger, stress, mobbing, vold, sterke følelsesmessige påkjenninger og arbeid hvor en må forholde seg til menneskelig lidelse, sier Ingrid Sivesind Mehlum ved Statens arbeidsmiljøinstitutt (STAMI). (...)
Arbeidsforhold og selvmordsrisiko
stami.no 25.4.2006
Noen yrkesgrupper har høyere forekomst av selvmord enn andre yrkesgrupper. Psykiske belastninger kan være en årsak til dette. For disse yrkesgruppene er det viktig med større kunnskap om selvmord og selvmordsforebygging.
Hvert år dør dobbelt så mange mennesker i selvmord som i trafikkulykker, de fleste i yrkesfør alder. Yrkesgrupper som skogsarbeidere, leger, sykepleiere, veterinærer og politifolk har en høyere forekomst av selvmord enn andre yrkesgrupper. - Det er flere årsaker til dette, men psykiske belastninger i arbeidet kan være en årsak. Eksempler på dette kan være tungt ansvar, vanskelige avgjørelser, uløselige konflikter, stadige omstillinger, stress, mobbing, vold, sterke følelsesmessige påkjenninger og arbeid hvor en må forholde seg til menneskelig lidelse, sier Ingrid Sivesind Mehlum ved STAMI. (...)
Flere selvmord i svensk varetekt
aftenposten.no 17.4.2006
En økning i antall selvmord på varetektsceller i Sverige siden begynnelsen av 1990-tallet kan skyldes nye byggemetoder, ifølge Sveriges Radio. (...)
Halvparten av norske fanger har vurdert selvmord
hegnar.no 31.3.2006
Innsatte i norske fengsler lider i mye høyere grad av psykiske lidelser enn resten av befolkningen. (...)
En av to tenker på selvmord
aftenposten.no 31.3.2006
Allerede førsoning har halvparten av de innsatte tenkt på å ta livet av seg. Blant gjengangerne gjelder det hver åttende. (...)
Selvmordstruede menn blir oversett
psykiskhelse.no 2006(2)
– Helsevesenet er ikke gode nok til å oppdage depresjon tidlig hos menn. Dette kan være en av årsakene til at tre ganger så mange menn som kvinner tar sitt eget liv, sier professor Lars Mehlum. (...)
Redd lykkepiller tar flere liv
dt.no 28.1.2006
Landsforeningen for etterlatte ved selvmord reagerer sterkt på at lykkepiller som kan øke risikoen for selvmord, er i fritt omløp. (...)
RYSTET. - Et medikament der pasienten risikerer å øke risikoen for å begå selvmord, burde aldri vært sluppet ut på markedet uten å være tilstrekkelig utprøvet, sier leder for Landsforeningen for etterlatte ved selvmord i Buskerud, Eva Brekke Voss. (...)
- LITEN RESPEKT. Leder for Mental Helse i Drammen, Wenche Steenstrup, mener legemiddelindustrien driver et kynisk spill med pasientenes liv som innsats.
- Dette vitner om liten respekt for andre mennesker. Jeg blir opprørt over det jeg oppfatter som en nonchalant holdning overfor personer med psykiske lidelser. Her jobber vi hardt for at folk ikke skal begå selvmord, så skrives det ut medisiner som virker motsatt. Det er hårreisende og bekrefter bare hvor kynisk legemiddelindustrien er, påpeker Steenstrup.
Hun tror mange pasienter føler seg hjelpeløse i møtet med helsevesenet.
(...) - Det er legenes plikt å fortelle pasienten hvilke bivirkninger medisinen kan gi. For mange pasienter er det vanskelig nok å finne fram i vrimmelen av medikamenter. Jeg synes ikke slike medikamenter burde selges. Hva er vitsen med å ta en medisin som kan øke sjansene for å ta sitt eget liv, spør Steenstrup. (...)
Langt flere unge kvinder forsøger selvmord
politiken.dk 25.1.2006
stigende antal kvinder mellem 20 og 29 år forsøger at tage deres eget liv, når problemerne bliver for uoverskuelige. Den voldsomme udvikling bekymrer eksperter. Unge kvinder er ikke tidligere blevet betragtet som en risikogruppe. (...)
8.000 årlige selvmordsforsøg
Også socialminister Eva Kjer Hansen (V) er bekymret over udviklingen:
»Der er nu tre risikogrupper, som vi skal sætte særligt ind overfor. Det er de ældre mænd, dem med psykiatriske diagnoser og så de unge kvinder. Der må forskes i, hvorfor fænomenet opstår, så vi kan sætte rigtigt ind«, siger ministeren. (...)
Selvmordsveileder på nett
propaganda-as.no 17.1.2006
Norsk Presseforbund har utarbeidet en egen veileder for omtale av selvmord. Den utdypende veilederen er nå tilgjengelig på forbundets hjemmesider. (...)
Hospitalslæger begår oftest selvmord
bt.dk 5.1.2006
Det er de mandlige læger på de danske hospitaler som ligger øverst i selvmordsstatistikkerne. Risikoen for at de tager livet af sig selv er næsten tre gange så høj risiko som for en gennemsnitlig beskæftiget mand.
De står med livet i hænderne hver dag. Og ikke alle har lige let ved at håndtere det barske arbejde. Det viser nye tal fra Danmarks statitisk, som NORDJYSKE Stiftstidende bringer torsdag. (...)
Tre av ti blogger om psykiske lidelser
vg.no 31.12.2005
Japan Seeks To Reduce Suicide
cbsnews.com 27.12.2005
(AP) Japan will launch a nationwide study into suicide and provide more counselors and support services across the country as the government attempts to combat what it describes as an alarming rise in suicides.
The number of suicides in Japan hit 32,325 in 2004, the seventh straight year the figure has topped 30,000, according to National Police Agency records. The government hopes to reduce that by 5,000 by 2015, said Manabu Sumi, an official of the Mental Health and Welfare Division with the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. (...)
58 utrykninger på 24 timer
tv2.no 29.12.2005
Gjennom 24 timer den første helgen i desember rykket politiet i Norge ut på hele 58 oppdrag som går under kategorien sykdom/psykiatri.
Dette er jobber opp mot personer som lider av psykiske lidelser.
Loggen vitner om mennesker med psykiske lidelser som ikke får nok hjelp, og familier rundt som også må lide. I tillegg til disse oppdragene har politiet fått en rekke telefoner som de ikke gjør noe med. Ofte er det snakk om ensomme personer som vil ha oppmerksomhet, og politiet klarer i mange tilfeller å snakke dem ned over telefonen.
Arne Johannessen i Politiets Fellesforbund har lest loggen som TV 2 Nettavisen har laget, og er ikke forundret. (...)
Katastrofer kan føre til selvmord
aftenposten.no 17.12.2005
Nordmenn som overlevde tsunamien har tatt livet sitt. Professor Lars Mehlum sier at sammenhengen mellom katastrofer og selvmord er kjent.
Tsunami-overlevende føler seg glemt
nrk.no 17.12.2005
Nordmenn som overlevde flodbølgekatastrofen, sliter med store traumer og føler at deres skjebne faller i skyggen av de som mistet noen for ett år siden, viser en undersøkelse NRK har gjort.
- Jeg har fått diagnosen post-traumatisk stress-syndrom, og sliter ganske mye. (...)
Selvmordstanker og mareritt
Undersøkelsen NRK har gjort, viser at flesteparten av de som har problemer i dag, opplever rastløshet og konsentrasjonsvansker. Mange har søvnproblemer og mareritt, og tåler ikke høye lyder. Noen av dem har vurdert å ta sitt eget liv. (...)
Økt dødelighet lenge etter selvmordsforsøk
Tidsskr Nor Lægeforen (1.12.2005)
Selvmordsforsøk er en sterk risikofaktor for selvmord. Mennesker som har forsøkt å ta sitt eget liv, må derfor følges opp særlig nøye. Nå har britiske forskere undersøkt hvordan det gikk med nesten 1 000 pasienter som var innlagt 1985 - 86 etter selvforgiftning med medikamenter (Br J Psychiatry 2005; 187: 470 - 5).
94 % lot seg oppspore etter 16 år. 17 % var døde, 3,5 % av sannsynlig suicid. Selvmord som dødsårsak var forbundet med en rekke faktorer som ble registrert under innleggelsen, men bare alvorligheten av selvmordsforsøket og en tidligere relevant sykehistorie var selvstendige risikofaktorer.
Prediksjon av suicid er svært vanskelig. Forfatterne mener derfor at god oppfølging av alle selvmordsforsøkere er nødvendig. (...)
Selvmord må omtales varsomt
journalisten.no 25.11.2005
Som ventet vedtok hovedstyret i Norsk Presseforbund en ny selvmordsparagraf i Vær Varsom-plakaten på dagens møte. Det åpnes for omtale, men med varsomhet.
Det heter i den nye formuleringen: "Vær varsom ved omtale av selvmord og selvmordsforsøk. Unngå omtale som ikke er nødvendig for å oppfylle allmenne informasjonsbehov. Unngå beskrivelse av metode eller andre forhold som kan bidra til å utløse flere selvmordshandlinger".
- Det er altså ikke snakk om noe fritt fram, sier generalsekretær Per Edgar Kokkvold i Presseforbundet:
Han sier at man plikter å avveie informasjonsbehovet mot både personvernet og faren for "smitte", eller såkalt imiterende selvmordshandlinger. Her har styret valgt å følge klare råd fra fagmiljøene. (...)
- Sjefer gir ansatte selvmordstanker
nrk.no 15.11.2005
Dårlige sjefer kan gjøre ansatte så frustrerte at de vurderer selvmord på grunn av måten de behandles på, mener daglig leder Grace Beathe Mathisen i Arbeidslivstelefonen.
– Dårlige ledere fører til psykiske problemer, mer sykefravær og i de verste tilfellene til tanker om selvmord hos ansatte, sier Mathisen til Dagsavisen.
Før utgangen av året vil Arbeidslivstelefonen, som drives av Mental Helse Norge, ha mottatt om lag 1.500 samtaler.
Dette er dobbelt så mange som i fjor.
Sjefproblem dominerer
Om lag 70 prosent av samtalene dreier seg om dårlige sjefer og konflikter innringerne har med sine ledere. (...)
Drikker seg i hjel
aftenposten.no 31.10.2005
Stadig flere finner drikker seg i hjel. Hvert tredje dødsfall blant middelaldrende menn i Finland i fjor skyldtes alkoholbruk, viste fersk statistikk mandag.
I 2003 døde 1.560 finner av alkoholrelaterte årsaker, mens tallet i år steg til 1.860, en økning på nesten 20 prosent. Tallet på slike dødsfall har økt jevnt og trutt de siste 20 årene, går det fram av oversikten fra Statistikcentralen i Helsingfors.
En tredel av alle dødsfall av denne typen skyldes akutt alkoholforgiftning. Resten skyldes langtidsvirkninger av et høyt alkoholforbruk, som lever- og hjerte-kar-sykdommer, sier medisinske fagfolk i Finland.
Årsaken til at tallet på alkoholdødsfall økte så bratt fra 2003 til 2004 er ennå ikke utredet. De mest utbredte dødsårsakene blant finske kvinner i arbeidsfør alder er brystkreft, og for mennenes vedkommende hjerte-kar-lidelser.
I mars i fjor satte finnene ned avgiften på brennevin med 44 prosent, som ledd i tilpasningen til det lavere avgiftsnivået i EU. Flere forskere mener at det er resultatene av denne alkoholpolitikken man nå ser på dødsstatistikken. (© NTB) (...)
Selvmordsadfærd blandt 16 -35-årige danskere
Institut for Folkesundhed (Uge 43, 2005)
En ny undersøgelse viser, at særligt ni faktorer har selvstændig (statistisk signifikant) sammenhæng med tanker om selvmord og selvmordsforsøg (suicidal adfærd):
At have selvmordstanker og/eller at forsøge på selvmord er alvorlige tegn på mistrivsel. Fra talrige undersøgelser ved vi, at selvmordstanker og selvmordsforsøg er en af de væsentligste risikofaktorer for fuldbyrdelse af selvmord. Ikke mindst derfor er det vigtigt at have kendskab til, om der er særlige sociale og helbredsmæssige forhold, man skal være opmærksomme på.
Gruppen med selvmordstanker eller selvmordsforsøg er generelt karakteriseret ved, at de har dårligere socialt netværk, dårligere levevilkår - i kraft af større arbejdsløshed og økonomiske problemer -, de har en usundere livsstil og føler sig generelt mindre raske og velbefindende, de gør mere brug af sundhedsvæsenet og har et højere sygefravær. (...)
Australian state and federal governments are attacked on mental health care
BMJ 2005;331:984 (29 October)
More than a decade of mental health reform in Australia has failed to translate into better services, a new report says. (...)
Erstatning etter selvmord på psykiatrisk avdeling
nrk.no 28.10.2005
Moren til en 19 år gammel kvinne som tok sitt eget liv på akuttpsykiatrisk avdeling på Lovisenberg sykehus i fjor, får nå erstatning.
19 år gamle Kathrine Skrindo klarte å ta sitt eget liv da hun var innlagt på Lovisenberg sykehus i desember.
Moren hennes, Torill Skrindo, mener de ansatte på sykehuset ikke gjorde jobben sin i forhold til datteren. (...)
Det er foreløpig ukjent hvor mye moren får i erstatning, men summen er ikke så viktig for henne. Det viktige er at hun har fått medhold.
Kathrines dødsfall granskes også av Fylkeslegen i Oslo.
Skrindos advokat Gunhild Lærum mener at erstatningen også må få betydning for Fylkeslegens granskning.
- Denne avgjørelsen gir jo et helt klart signal om at her har det blitt begått en feil, sier Lærum. (...)
Lovisenberg sykehus var i søkelyset også denne uken da en 38 år gammel kvinne ble siktet for drapsforsøk på sin fem år gamle datter.
Kvinnen var tidligere innlagt på sykehuset og politiet etterforsker oppfølgingen hun har fått, og helsetilsynet vil vurdere om det har vært rutinesvikt i saken.
Tone Herem sier det er leit med disse sakene, men at man ikke kan gardere seg fullt ut for at ikke noe skal gå galt i psykiatrien. (...)
Karakteristik af personer med selvmordstanker og selvmordsforsøg
netdoktor.com/dk 27.10.2005
Mennesker der lider af selvmordstanker eller har forsøgt selvmord er generelt karakteriseret ved, at de har dårligere socialt netværk og dårligere levevilkår.
En ny undersøgelse viser, at særligt ni faktorer har selvstændig sammenhæng med tanker om selvmord og selvmordsforsøg, derfor er det særlig vigtigt at have kendskab til, hvilke faktorer man skal være opmærksom på. (...)
Går inn for omtale av selvmord
propaganda-as.no 25.10.2005
Norske redaktører går inn for at man kan omtale selvmord i mediene. - Det kan være relevant, sier styrelder i Norsk redaktørforening, Marit Haukom.
På et styremøte i Norsk redaktørforening mandag kveld gikk norske redaktører inn for at man kan åpne for omtale av selvmord i mediene. Det innebærer en endring av Vær Varsom-plakaten, som hittil har anbefalt å ikke omtale selvmord i mediene.
Ifølge NRK har både etterlatte og journalister ønsket å endre dette punktet. Nå ønsker redaktørene at man omtaler det med med vær varsom-merking.
- Det kan være relevant å omtale selvmord i mediene, sier styreleder Marit Haukom i Redaktørforeningen. Hun mener det fortsatt er viktig at vi ikke omtaler metode. (...)
Helsefarlig selvmordsomtale
Tidsskr Nor Lægeforen 2005; 125: 2757 (20.20.2005)
Journalister og helsepersonell må kjenne farene ved omtale av selvmord når pressens Vær Varsom-plakat nå skal revideres
Depression and suicide attempt as risk factors for incident unprovoked seizures
Annals of Neurology (10 Oct 2005)
Abstract
Major depression has been shown to increase the risk for development of epilepsy, but prior studies have not evaluated whether this is due to specific symptoms of depression. We conducted a population-based case-control study of all newly diagnosed unprovoked seizures among Icelandic children and adults aged 10 years and older to test the hypothesis that major depression is a risk factor for developing unprovoked seizure and epilepsy, and to address whether specific symptoms of depression account for this increased risk. Cases were matched to the next two same sex births from the population registry. Using standardized interviews, we ascertained symptoms of major depression to make a Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) diagnosis. A history of major depression was 1.7-fold more common among cases than among controls (95% confidence interval, 1.1-2.7). A history of attempted suicide was 5.1-fold more common among cases than among controls (95% confidence interval, 2.2-11.5). Attempted suicide increased seizure risk even after adjusting for age, sex, cumulative alcohol intake, and major depression or number of symptoms of depression. Major depression and attempted suicide independently increase the risk for unprovoked seizure. These data suggest that depression and suicide attempt may be due to different underlying neurochemical pathways, each of which is important in the development of epilepsy. (...)
Study links depression, suicide and seizures
reutershealth.com 14.10.2005
- Results of a study hint that the brain dysfunction that underlies epilepsy may also determine whether people are at risk for suicide. (...)
Although a link between depression and suicide and seizures has been previously documented, most studies did not address the time order of the association. Up until now it was assumed that suicide attempts occurred more often in patients with epilepsy because the disease increases the risk for depression.
To further evaluate this relationship, Dr. Dale C. Hesdorffer, from Columbia University in New York, and colleagues identified 324 individuals ages 10 years or older with unprovoked seizures or epilepsy first diagnosed between 1995 and 1999 and matched them by age and gender with 647 subjects drawn from an Icelandic population registry.
They used standardized interviews to gauge symptoms of major depression and "suicidality" that were present before the date of the first seizures.
In the Annals of Neurology, Hesdorffer and colleagues report that a history of major depression increased the risk of epilepsy. Moreover, people with epilepsy were four times more likely to have attempted suicide before ever having a seizure, even after other factors were taken into account linking drinking alcohol, having depression, age, and gender.
These data suggest that the brain dysfunction that underlies epilepsy may also increase the risk of suicide. The results also suggest that depression and suicidal behavior may be related to different mechanisms. (...)
SOURCE: Annals of Neurology October, 2005 (...)
Va. Violent Deaths Are Mostly Suicides
Washington Post 12.10.2005
Study Finds High Rate for Older Men
Suicides accounted for more than half of all violent deaths in Virginia in 2003, with the majority committed by white men with marital troubles and a history of depression, according to a state study to be published today. (...)
For example, the report could be helpful, Head said, for health care providers who regularly consult with senior citizens and at mental health centers. The greatest number of suicide victims had undergone treatment for mental illness or depression, while a significant number had substance abuse problems and had previously tried to kill themselves, according to the report. (...)
Mange selvmord i fengsler
Tidsskr Nor Lægeforen 2005 (17.11.2005)
I perioden 1978 - 2003 tok 1 312 menn sitt eget liv i fengsler i England og Wales. Det viser en studie publisert i The Lancet (2005; 366: 1301 - 2). Dette gir en standardisert mortalitetsratio på 5,1, det vil si fem ganger høyere blant innsatte enn i den øvrige befolkning. Raten økte i løpet av perioden. Særlig gutter i alderen 15 - 17 år var utsatt (mortalitetsratio 18).
Dette samsvarer med det som er funnet i mange andre land. To lederskribenter mener at de økende ratene viser at de innsatte har stadig dårligere mental helse (2005; 366: 1242 - 3). (...)
Suicides in male prisoners in England and Wales, 1978–2003
The Lancet 2005; 366:1301-1302 (8.10.2005)
Summary
The number of suicides in English and Welsh prisons is increasing, but the excess compared with the general population has not been reliably quantified. We therefore compared, in narrow age bands, all 1312 suicides of male prisoners in England and Wales between 1978 and 2003 with suicide rates in the general male population. The overall standardised mortality ratio for suicide was 5•1 (95% CI, 4•8–5•3), suggesting a five-fold excess of suicides in male prisoners, with a particulary striking excess in boys aged 15–17 years (standardised mortality ratio 18 [13–26]). The proportional excess of suicides of male prisoners has been increasing during the past quarter of a century, which underscores the need for substantial improvements in suicide prevention in prisons. (...)
Økt selvmordsrate ved kreft
Eline Feiring Tidsskr Nor Lægeforen 2005; 125: 2599 (6.10.2005)
Studier fra Norge, Sverige og Danmark viser at grupper av kreftpasienter har høyere selvmordsrate enn befolkningen for øvrig.
I løpet av det siste året er det publisert tre artikler om selvmordsforekomsten blant kreftpasienter i de nordiske landene. Først ute var norske forskere, som viste at for perioden 1960 - 99 var selvmordsraten noe forhøyet (1).
Nå har danske og svenske forskere gjort tilsvarende koblingsstudier mellom kreftregistrene og dødsårsaksregistrene i sine land (2, 3). Risikoen var høyere blant pasienter med dårlig prognose og høyest de første månedene etter at de hadde fått diagnosen. (...)
Hjelp av kognitiv terapi etter selvmordsforsøk
Eline Feiring Tidsskr Nor Lægeforen 2005; 125: 2601 (6.10.2005)
Kognitiv terapi har en positiv effekt i oppfølgingen av personer som har forsøkt å begå selvmord. (...)
Vil ha medieomtale av selvmord
HegnarOnline 30.9.2005
Vær Varsom-plakaten sier at selvmord eller selvmordsforsøk som hovedregel ikke skal omtales. Dette endres nå.
Den gamle taushetsklausulen som hindrer omtale av selvmord i norske medier står for fall. Verdens helseorganisasjon (WHO) er positiv til utviklingen.
– Selvmordsproblemet er litt som hiv og aids. Hvis man ikke snakker om problemet får man heller ikke gjort noe med det, sier José Bertolote i Verdens helseorganisasjon til Vårt Land.
Bertolote, som er lege og arbeider med selvmordsproblematikk i WHO, understreker at mediene bør vise ansvarlighet i omtalen av selvmord. Det vil i så fall være i tråd med anbefalingene til et utvalg som arbeider med å revidere journalistenes Vær Varsom-plakat. (...)
Økt selvmordsfare blant barnevernbarn
Helserevyen 29.9.2005
Dødeligheten blant barnevernsbarn er dramatisk mye høyere enn blant andre barn. Faren for selvmord er åtte ganger høyere enn blant andre barn og unge. (...)
I barneverngruppen var det høy utbredelse av voldsomme dødsfall som trafikk- og andre ulykker, selvmord og drap.
Taushet kan drepe
Aftenposten 26.9.2005
Risikoen for selvmord, medisinering og smittefare blant innsatte i fengsler forblir ofte ukjent for de ansatte. Justisdepartementet vil nå lempe på taushetsplikten. (...)
Ansatte savner å få viktig kunnskap om hvilke medikamenter som benyttes av de enkelte innsatte - og eventuelle bivirkninger.
- I dag forhindres vi i en viss grad fra å forebygge selvmord og dødsfall gjennom overdoser. I andre tilfeller vil kombinasjonsbruk av medikamenter og amfetamin utløse en voldelig adferd, forklarer Svenkerud. Større kunnskaper vil bedre forståelsen for slike hendelser. (...)
Flere selvmordsforsøg i fængslerne
Politiken 25.9.2005
Antallet af selvmord i fængslerne stiger kraftigt, viser en ny opgørelse. Fængselsforbundet mener, at noget af stigningen skyldes overbelægning.
Mens antallet af selvmord i fængslerne har været nogenlunde konstant siden 2000, er antallet af selvmordsforsøg i samme periode steget markant.
Det fremgår af en opgørelse fra Folketingets Ombudsmand Hans Gammeltoft-Hansen. Han bliver løbende underrettet om og undersøger alle selvmord og selvmordsforsøg begået i fængslerne.
Sidste år landede 67 selvmords- og selvmordsforsøgssager på Ombudsmandens bord, mod 37 i 2003 og 40 i 2002. I år har tallet allerede passeret 44. (...)
Shock over prison suicide rates
BBC 14.09.2005
Men in prison are five times more likely to commit suicide than those in the general population, a Lancet online study has found.
Mental illness and overcrowding are possible explanations, the University of Oxford researchers suggested.
The analysis of suicide rates in England and Wales from 1978 to 2003 found the difference was particularly striking in 15- to 17-year olds.
Prisoners in that age group were 18 times more likely to kill themselves. (...)
More killed by suicide than war
BBC 8.9.2005
Nearly a million people take their own lives every year, more than those murdered or killed in war.
World Health Organisation figures show a suicide takes place somewhere in the world every 40 seconds.
The numbers are highest in Europe's Baltic states, where around 40 people per 100,000 commit suicide each year.
With World Suicide Prevention Day approaching on Friday, the WHO says the toll could be reduced with greater public awareness and political will.
"Suicide is a major public health problem and accounts for 1.5% of the total cost of disease to world society," said Jose Bertolote, mental health specialist at the WHO. (...)
Hasj øker faren for selvmord
Aftenposten 10.8.2005
Et australsk forskningsprosjekt gjort blant eneggede tvillinger, viser at langvarig bruk av hasj kan øke risikoen for selvmord. Forskere undersøkte depresjon, selvmordstanker og selvmordsforsøk hos eneggede tvillinger, der bare den ene var bruker av hasj over lengre tid skriver Tidsskrift for norsk Psykologforening .
Det viste seg at både tanker og ønsker om selvmord, samt reelle selvmordsforsøk var vesentlig høyer i hasjgruppen. Graden av depresjon var imidlertid ikke særlig høyere blant de hasjrøykende tvillingene. Hypotesen er at hasj på en eller annen måte bidrar til en mer likegyldig holdning til livet. (...)
Dobling av selvmord i psykiatrien
Aftenposten 7.8.2005
Antallet som begår selvmord mens de er under psykiatrisk behandling er trolig dobbelt så høyt som helsemyndighetene tidligere har trodd. (...)
- Innsatsen og oppmerksomheten er blitt mindre enn den skulle ha vært. Liv kan ha gått tapt på grunn av manglende erkjennelse av at systemet ikke er godt nok, sier hun. (...)
I første halvår i år har mellom 30 og 40 mennesker endt sine liv mens de var innlagt på psykiatriske sykehus eller var til poliklinisk behandling.
- Ikke å melde i fra er lovbrudd, sier Geir Sverre Braut, assisterende direktør i Helsetilsynet. Årsaken til at han ser alvorlig på at helsemyndighetene ikke har kjent omfanget av selvmordene før nå er todelt:
- Å få korrekte data er viktig for oss, fordi det gir grunnlag for å oppdage og følge opp behandlingssvikt. (...)
- Men enda viktigere er slike meldinger for helsevirksomheten selv. Den må bruke enhver hendelse til å se nærmere på egne rutiner og hvordan de vurderer situasjoner, sier Braut. (...)
Risken för självmordsförsök minskade efter kognitiv terapi
Netdoktor.se 4.8.2005
Risken att begå självmord är cirka 40 gånger högre om man redan gjort ett försök innan. Ny forskning visar att en person som har försökt att begå självmord och sedan behandlats med kognitiv beteendeterapi löpte hälften så hög risk att göra ett nytt försök som den som fått konventionell vård. I studien ingick 120 personer och efter en uppföljningstid på 18 månader försökte 24,1 procent i terapigruppen åter begå självmord jämfört med 41,6 procent i den andra gruppen. Graden av depression var också lägre i terapigruppen. (...)
Cognitive therapy reduces the frequency of further suicide attempts
JAMA 2005;294:2005;294:563-570 (August 3, 2005)
Suicide is the fourth leading cause of death for adults between the ages of 18 and 65 years in the United States. Several studies have shown that one of the strongest risk factors for completed suicide is a history of previous attempts. Attempted suicide is much more common than completed suicide and so provides an opportunity to intervene in a high risk group. (...)
FILM PUTS FOCUS ON NYU SUICIDES
NEW YORK POST 25.7.2005
A New York City filmmaker, intrigued by the chilling series of death leaps that shocked the NYU campus a year ago, has made a documentary that explores depression and suicide among college-age youths - and the pharmaceutical industry's sometimes questionable efforts to combat them. (...)
Pesticide-like Poisoning from a Prescriiption Drug.
N Engl J Med 2005;353:317-318 (July 21. 2005)
To the Editor: Acetylcholinesterase inhibitors have long been known for their use as pesticides. Since the 1990s, acetylcholinesterase-inhibiting pharmaceuticals (donepezil, tacrine, galantamine, and rivastigmine) have been used to treat Alzheimer's disease; they are currently being investigated as a treatment for dementia associated with Parkinson's disease in adults1 and with Tourette's syndrome and autistic and attention deficit-hyperactivity disorders in children.2,3 Wider use of this class of medications for a broader variety of disorders increases the possibility of pesticide-like poisoning from a prescribed medication. We report a case of such poisoning. (...)
Unge kvinner forsøker oftest selvmord
Aftenposten 30.6.2005
I løpet av tre år ble det registrert mer enn 13 000 selvpåførte forgiftninger med legemidler i Norge. De aller fleste tilfellene er selvmordsforsøk, og yngre kvinner er mest utsatt, viser en fersk studie.
- Det kan finnes noen forskjeller som kan forklare ulikhetene i disse fylkene, men det vet vi ikke nok om. Det kan være flere som kommer inn til behandling, eller det kan være måten behandlingsapparatet er organisert på eller andre faktorer, sier Dieserud til Aftenposten.
- Folkehelseproblem.
Nå etterlyser hun et nasjonalt, personidentifiserbart pasientregister, som blant annet kan avdekke hvor mange personer som har gjennomført flere selvmordsforsøk.
- Hvor mange overlagte og alvorlige selvmordsforsøk dreier dette seg om?
- Det kan vi ikke si ut fra vår undersøkelse. Men i gruppen selvpåførte forgiftninger, er den største gruppen innenfor det vi betegner som selvmordsforsøk. Vi bruker vanligvis en relativt vid definisjon på selvmordsforsøk, der det for de fleste ikke er et klart ønske om å dø. Det er blandede følelser, de ønsker både hjelp og de ønsker å dø, sier hun. Dieserud mener selvpåførte forgiftninger med legemidler utgjør et stort folkehelseproblem.
Suicide and exposure to organophosphate insecticides: cause or effect?
Am J Ind Med. 2005;47(4):308-21 (April 2005)
BACKGROUND: Suicide using pesticides as agent is recognized as a major cause of pesticide poisoning. (...)
CONCLUSIONS: OPs are not only agents for suicide. They may be part of the causal pathway. Emphasizing OPs solely as agents for suicide shifts responsibility for prevention to the individual, reducing corporate responsibility and limiting policy options available for control. (...)
Health Effects of Insecticides
JAMA 2005;293:2992 (June 22/29, 2005)
...The data collected linked use of insecticides, including organophosphates and organochlorines, to reports of recurring headaches, fatigue, insomnia, dizziness, nausea, hand tremors, numbness, and...
...the insecticides studied have been banned or restricted in the United States, including DDT and organophosphates....
Åtte selvmord ved psykiatrisk avdeling
nrk.no 30.5.2005
Sykehuset Østfold skal granske et høyt antall selvmord blant pasientene.
Det uroer ledelsen ved sykehuset Østfold at så mange som åtte av deres pasienter ved psykiatrisk avdeling i fjor valgte å gjøre slutt på livet, mens de ennå var innlagt. (...)
India's suicide epidemic is blamed on the British
Independent 16.5.2005
Trade reforms backed and funded by the British Government have caused an agricultural crisis in India which has sparked an epidemic of suicide among impoverished farmers, a leading charity claims today.
More than 4,000 farmers have killed themselves in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh since a programme of free-market measures was implemented by a "hardline liberalising regime" with the help of a £1.65m grant from the Department for International Development (DfID).
A study for Christian Aid claims that the dramatic increase in the suicide rate, which saw 2,115 farmers take their lives last year compared with 588 in 2003, is directly linked to British support for policies joining aid to economic liberalisation in developing economies. (...)
Among the methods of suicide chosen by victims has been to drink the pesticide they hoped would transform their economic prospects. (...)
Selvmord i Norge, nordiske og baltiske land: Samlet oversikt over figurer/tabeller tilgjengelig i pdf og powerpoint.
med.uio.no (2005)
"Lykkepiller" til børn frikendt for at udløse selvmord
berlingske.dk 24.3.2006
Stik imod Lægemiddelstyrelsens advarsel frikender en dansk undersøgelse "lykkepiller" for at kunne udløse selvmord hos børn og unge.
Ifølge en ny dansk undersøgelse behøver forældre og læger ikke frygte for livstruende bivirkninger hos børn og unge.
Det siger afdelingslæge Lars Søndergård, Rigshospitalet, som er en af forskerne bag en ny dansk undersøgelse, der viser, at antidepressiv medicin med den populære betegnelse "lykkepiller" ikke udløser selvmord hos børn og unge.
Ifølge Dagens Medicin går forskningen dermed imod Lægemiddelstyrelsens advarsel om, at medicinen kan føre til selvmordsadfærd og -tanker hos børn og unge.
- Hvis det er sådan, at lykkepiller driver børn og unge til selvmord, som det har heddet i pressen, burde man forvente, at der kom flere selvmord i perioden, men det gør der ikke. Det er et ret stærkt resultat, siger Lars Søndergård. (...)
Survey Paints Bleak Picture of Health Insurance Coverage and Premiums
Psychiatr Serv 55:1192-1193 (October 2004)
(...) In 2003, U.S. physicians wrote 15 million antidepressant prescriiptions for patients under age 18, according to FDA data. In the first six months of 2004, antidepressant prescriiptions for children increased by almost 8 percent, despite the new drug labeling. (...)
Lawsuit filed for suicide responsibility
eacourier.com 30.8.1999
(...) Baskins suffered "intense" side effects including extreme agitation, acute paranoia and insomnia, according to the lawsuit, as well as a psychiatric disorder called akathisia, he simply couldn't sit still. (...)
The attorneys said that about 2,000 cases of suicidal and otherwise violent behavior in people taking SSRIs have been reported to the Food and Drug Administration. (...)
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