Resource Tag: CROATIA

Background/aims: Suicidal ideations (SI) indicate and predict psychological distress. We examined the prevalence of SI among early adolescents and its association with parental war participation, personal, behavioral, and sociodemographic characteristics. Methods: We performed a cross-sectional questionnaire study on 803 12-year-old adolescents. Data were collected using a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Junior Eysenck Personality Questionnaire and Children Depression Inventory. […]

This study examined the statistical relation between platelet serotonin concentration & serum cortisol concentration in a group of patients with posttraumatic stress disorder, with & without attempted suicide, treated in hospital in Zagreb. Results showed significantly lower platelet serotonin concentration in the patients, with & without suicidal behaviour, as compared to healthy controls. There were […]

Owing to the assumed functionality of intronic polymorphisms of tryptophan hydroxylase (218AC) and 5-hydroxytryptamine transporter (VNTR-2) genes, the authors investigated frequencies of occurrence of the tryptophan hydroxylase & 5-hydroxytryptamine transporter genotypes containing lower activity alleles in 192 suicide victims & 377 controls. Significant differences in frequences of these genotype combinations were found between suicide victims […]

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In the last decade, suicide attempts & suicides have increased greatly among Croatian youth. Suicide is one of the leading causes of mortality in this age group. Risk factors which influence suicide & suicidal behaviour include genetics, family dynamics, & the external environment including school, friends & peers, social environment, & social media. It is […]

This study assessed the usefulness of transcranial sonography recording in a group of 17 patients with major depressive disorder & 14 patients with major depressive disorder who also reported suicide ideation. 40 healthy controls were included in the study. Reduced raphe echogenicity was found in 8 of 17 patients with major depressive disorder but only […]

This study tested the association of the polymorphism in the serotonin 2C (5HT-2C) receptor coding region (Cys23Ser) with deaths by suicide. The study was based on 2 independent samples, one German (284 suicide victims versus 297 controls) & the other of Slavic/Croatian ethnicity (118 suicide victims versus 275 controls). No significant differences in allele or […]

This study examined the characteristics of 25 psychiatric inpatients who died by suicide in the Vrapce Psychiatric Hospital (Croatia) during the period 1996-2006. A typical profile was a middle-aged person, single, unemployed, repeatedly hospitalized, with schizophrenia, a history of suicide attempts, using a violent method after more than three weeks of hospital treatment. It is […]

The hypothesis that the level of alcohol intoxication & the choice of method are related was tested. Suicides in southwestern Croatia during the period 1996-2005 were analyzed. 10 methods of suicide were studied. The highest blood alcohol levels at the time of suicide were those that involved the use of an explosive device, a method […]

Violent behaviour in 116 Croatian combat veterans was analyzed. Of these veterans, 79 had diagnosed posttraumatic stress disorder. Of 15 veterans displaying autoaggression, 3 engaged in self-mutilation, 7 (5 with posttraumatic stress disorder & 2 without) had suicide ideation, & 5 (all with posttraumatic stress disorder) attempted suicide. Of the 7 veterans with suicide ideation, […]

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The authors investigated the incidence of suicide & its distribution according to age, sex & method in the Zagreb area before & during the war in Croatia, based on an analysis of autopsy records at the Department of Forensic Medicine & Crimology on suicides committed during the five-year peace period (1986-1990), & the five-year war […]

The authors hypothesized that war circumstances would both increase the number & alter the pattern of violent deaths (homicides & suicides) in South Croatia. Demographic, temporal & circumstantial data, including location, weapon used, & possible motives, were analyzed based on autopsy & police reports from 77 homicides & 254 suicides. There were found to be […]

This article reports the case of a scuba diver found dead at the bottom of an undersea cave with a knife protruding from his chest. Autopsy confirmed death due to both drowning & a penetrating knife wound. The incident was first considered a homicide, but careful forensic analysis of the profile of the diver’s last […]

This study compared suicide rates in Australia, Slovenia, & Croatia with suicide rates in Croatian immigrant groups in Australia & Slovenia in a 10-year period between 1985 & 1994. It was found that Croat immigrants to Australia have the lowest suicide rate, but the highest male-female suicide ratio, which the authors suggest may be the […]

This article discusses the widespread stress, depression, & trauma in Croatia & the resulting high suicide rate. The author identifies high risk groups & discusses the lack of response to the probelm by the government. A number of non-government agencies such as Psychological Help in Zagreb work hard to address the issue, despite the lack […]