Resource Tag: CASE STUDIES

Distinguishing between homicides, suicides, and accidental deaths remains a challenging task. The examination of actual cases, which involve a multitude of variables, significantly contributes to our understanding of these matters. In this context, we present three distinct cases that required the involvement of various specialists to conduct a thorough analysis of the manner of death. In the […]

Bipolar disorder (BPD) is associated with high rates of suicide attempts but the anti-suicidal effect of mood stabilizing agents remains unclear. This study aimed to examine the association between mood stabilizing agents (lithium, valproate, lamotrigine, carbamazepine or antipsychotics) and risk of suicide attempts in patients with BPD using self-controlled case series study design. Among 14,087 […]

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a chronic psychiatric disorder characterized by obsessions and compulsions. It affects about 2.5% of people throughout their life and usually emerges in infancy/adolescence or early adulthood. Despite high levels of suffering and disability, high comorbidity rates, and low treatment response rates, suicidal behavior associated with this disorder was traditionally considered a […]

Background Reducing suicide risk in middle-aged males (40–54 years) is a national priority. People have often presented to their GP within 3 months before suicide thus highlighting an opportunity for early intervention. Aim To describe the sociodemographic characteristics and identify antecedents in middle-aged males who recently consulted a GP before dying by suicide. Design and […]

Background: Physical illness is linked with an increased risk of suicide; however, evidence from China is limited. Aims: To assess the influence of physical illness on risk of suicide among rural residents of China, and to examine the differences in the characteristics of people completing suicide with physical illness from those without physical illness. Method: In all, 200 suicide cases […]

Background: Events of extraordinary violence attract media attention. Recently, much media reporting has moved to the Internet, giving readers the possibility to comment online. Aims: To analyze the content of public cognitions and the emotional tonality of attitudes expressed in spontaneous Internet comments on a familicide-suicide case reported in the Estonian media. Methods: A content analysis is based on the […]

Henry Hellyer was an accomplished surveyor and explorer in Australia in the early 1800s whose apparent suicide at the age of 42 has puzzled historians for generations. He left behind several written works, including letters, journals, and reports. Aims: The current study assessed changes in the ways Hellyer used words in his various written documents during […]

Background: Ethical issues have been raised about using the psychological autopsy approach in the study of suicide. The impact on informants of control cases who participated in case-control psychological autopsy studies has not been investigated. Aims: (1) To investigate whether informants of suicide cases recruited by two approaches (coroners’ court and public mortuaries) respond differently to the […]

Suicidal behavior is the most violent behavior that a person commits against himself. Suicidal behavior is a complex form of behavior in which biological, psychological, cultural, environmental and social factors are effective together,  which deeply affect the individual, his environment, society and subsequent generations. The etiology of suicidal behavior in adolescents includes problems such as […]

Rising temperatures and heatwaves increase mortality. Many of the subpopulations most vulnerable to heat-related mortality are in prisons, facilities that may exacerbate temperature exposures. Yet, there is scare literature on the  impacts of heat among incarcerated populations. We analyzed data on mortality in U.S. state and private prisons from 2001–2019 linked to daily maximum temperature […]

Objective Suicide is the second leading cause of death in youth ten years old or older. Healthcare utilization prior to death by suicide is high in adults, but there is conflicting evidence in youth. The objective of this study was to compare healthcare utilization in youth who died by suicide to youth who died in […]

This community case study describes the experiences of two neighboring Muslim communities in the United States, following respective incidents of suicide. Case summaries are first presented to contextualize the community  response to the suicides. Subsequently, the discussion highlights relevant cultural and religious factors that impacted the responses of mosque leadership, mental health professionals, and the […]

Objective Specific pain conditions such as back pain and migraines are associated with increased risk of suicide mortality after accounting for key covariates. The purpose of the current study was to assess the associations of specific pain conditions with suicide attempts. Design Case-control Setting Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Subjects Individuals who utilized VHA services with […]

Background The opioid tramadol is used as analgesic drug, and more recently was also proposed for the management of major depressive disorder. However, growing evidence suggests a link between opioid system dysfunction and suicidal behaviors, raising the question of tramadol use in view of the high addictive and suicidal risk. Here, we present the case […]

Few studies have analyzed healthcare utilization before suicide among individuals with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This study examined the pattern of healthcare utilization and comorbidities shortly before death among patients with ADHD who died by suicide and compared these data with those of living controls. This study used Taiwan’s National Health Insurance Research Database to identify […]

Objective Self-burning is one way that some people choose to commit suicide, and it has been seen in many nations. This problem is considered as an uncommon method in developed countries and a common method of suicide in developing countries. The present study aimed to identify the factors associated with self-burning among Iranian women in […]

Background Suicide and risk factors have been poorly studied in the Muslim-majority countries that hinder the formulation of prevention strategies and affect suicide prevention eventually. Objectives We aimed at identifying and analyzing the psychological autopsy studies assessing the risk factors for suicide conducted in Muslim-majority countries. Methods We did a search to trace all the […]

Research considering the basis for mental health nurses wanting to enable recovery among people who suffer from suicidal behavior is sparse. The aim of this study is to explore and evaluate how a new recovery-oriented caring approach (ROCA) was experienced by a suicidal patient in a context of close relatives and nurses. A single-case study […]

To date, little guidance exists on how to design safe and effective online programming on sensitive and/or controversial topics. Massive online open courses (MOOCs) represent a unique opportunity for delivering inclusive and accessible teaching to international learner audiences. This paper provides an insight into designing and delivering the first internationally accessible MOOC on suicide prevention in the global context in 2019-highlighting insights into […]

Aims: Loneliness is increasingly recognised as a serious public health issue worldwide. However, there is scarce research addressing the association between loneliness and suicide in older adults in rural China. We set out to examine loneliness and other psychosocial factors in elderly suicide cases and explore their interaction effects. Methods: Using a 1 : 1 matched case-control […]

Objective To investigate suicide ideation and behavior as risk factors for suicide in schizophrenia during varying time periods. Method Cases were 84 patients who died by suicide within 5 years from diagnosis in a source population of patients discharged for the first time from psychiatric hospitals in Stockholm County, Sweden, with a schizophrenia spectrum diagnosis. One […]

Objective: Aim of this study was an evaluation of the completed suicide rate as well as exploring what associated psychological and social factors might have increased the risk of death from suicide. Method: The study examines all adult suicide cases in the Province of Denizli that occurred between January 2009 and December 2010. In addition […]

Background: The use of the helium suicide method has been increasing in popularity in Hong Kong since 2012. We have learned a valuable lesson in curbing the spread of charcoal burning (CB) suicide in the past 15 years and hope to prevent the helium suicide method from taking off in the community. Aims: To document what actions have […]