مجله اپیدمیولوژی ایران (Sep 2017)
Epidemiology of Suicide Attempts in Khorasan Razavi Province, 2014-2015
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Suicide is one of the public health challenges. It involves the individual, family, and even society. Epidemiological study of suicide is one of the most important measures in primary prevention and integration program for suicide in primary health care system. This study evaluated cases who attempted suicide in Khorasan Razavi Province in 2014-2015. Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on individuals who were visited at health care centers of Mashhad University of Medical Sciences from August 2014 to July 2015. Seventeen trained interviewers from 14 countries and three major referral centers collected demographic data, time, reason, and method of suicide. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-square test and Mann-Whitney test. P-value<0.05 was considered significant. Results: Totally, 893 individuals were evaluated which was equals to an annual incidence rate of 21.2 per 100000. Seventy-six percent (675) were female and 57% (496) were in the age group 15-24 years. In both genders, married individuals (61%, 543), high school degree (63%, 548) and a monthly income below 160$ were dominant (80%, 438). The most frequent reason and method for committing suicide was family dispute (47%, 380) and drug poisoning (81%, 632), respectively. Conclusion: Suicide is mostly being dealt with caution. However, the very first step is to know the current situation completely, so epidemiological studies can elucidate different dimensions of this public health problem.