Resource Tag: WEATHER

Annual suicide deaths outnumber the total deaths from homicide and war combined. Suicide is a complex behavioral endpoint, and a simple cause-and-effect model seems highly unlikely, but relationships with weather could yield important insight into the biopsychosocial mechanisms involved in suicide deaths. This study has been designed to test for a relationship between air temperature […]

The correlation between sunlight and mental health has been long studied and is even involved in the development of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), with subsequent development of light therapy for affected individuals. This points towards the question of the effects of varying levels of daily sunlight in the United States on rates of suicide – […]

This study examined whether rs4606, a single nucleotide polymorphism in the translated region at the 3′ end of RGS2, was related to suicide ideation in an epidemiologic sample of adults living in areas affected by the 2004 Florida hurricanes. A sample was generated via random digit-dial procedures. 607 participants who returned buccal DNA samples via […]

The effect of the 2004 tsuanmi on suicide rates in Sri Lanka were investigated. The number of suicides in the 2 years prior & 1 year after the tsunami were examined. Data from districts affected by the tsunami were compared with those from unaffected districts. No significant differences were found between the number of suicides […]

This study analyzed meteorological conditions at the time of attempted or completed suicides & examined the possible link between the changes of meteorological factors & the frequency of suicidal behaviour in the Mostar region, Bosnia. Results showed meteorological factors of the days with suicidal behaviour were similar to the day prior, but there was a […]

The effects of ambient air pollution on visits to a Vancouver emergency room for suicide attempts were investigated. The generalized linear mixed models technique was applied in the analysis of data. Both hierarchical & case-crossover methods confirmed positive & statistically significant associations among carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide, & particulate matter for all suicide […]

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The authors modeled monthly data on suicide & climatic conditions in Switzerland. Cross-correlations between the filtered residual series were calculated for the period 1881-2000, for consecutive 30-year periods, for different suicide methods, & with regard to the seasonality hypothesis, for series relying on moving 1- & 3-month frames. Positive cross-correlations emerged between suicide & temperature […]

In this letter to the editor, the authors discuss their study of the effect of latitude on suicide rates in Japan, given that there is a northern predominance in the prevalence of seasonal affective disorders in Japan. Government statistics on suicide for 1999 were examined & variables associated with latitude effect, yearly mean temperature, & […]

This study assessed the relationship between daily temperature & daily suicide counts in England & Wales between January 1993-December 2003 & established whether heatwaves are associated with increased mortality from suicide. Time-series regression analysis was used to explore & quantify the relationship between daily suicide counts & daily temperature. The impact of two heatwaves on […]

This study correlated geomagnetic storm activity with suicide rates. A retrospective analysis over a 13 year period, 1980-1992, was conducted. A significant correlation was found between the mean total of suicides & the mean average of storm activity during the study period. This correlation was true of both male & female suicides. Study results confirm […]

This study estimated the impact of Hurricane Katrina on mental illness & suicidality by comparing results of a post-Katrina survey with those of an earlier survey. The post-Katrina survey interviewed a sample of 1043 adults who lived in the same area before the hurricane. The same questions were asked about mental illness & suicidality as […]

The authors examined the frequency of suicide & its relation to meteorological factors in the state of Victoria between January 1990 & April 1999. The incidence of suicide had its nadir in winter & zenith in the spring & summer, paralleling closely the number of bright sunlight hours. This pattern was particularly marked for violent […]

27 studies on the association between daily & longer-term weather data & the incidence of attempted & completed suicide were reviewed. Most papers reported a statistical association of suicidal acts with at least one weather factor. However, the results are not conclusive & in part contradictory. Possibly due to the high variance in methodological approaches, […]

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Using Irish suicide data for the period 1990-1998, the independent effects of month & day were assessed. The authors found that the male suicide rate was significantly higher on working Mondays & Saturdays, & during April, June, & August. In contrast, female suicide rates were higher only in August & exhibited no day effect. Teenage […]

The authors examined the relationship of suicide in the elderly (65 & over) to season & weather & compared it to that in the younger population (10-64 years). They found that whereas younger suicides were associated with season, showing a spring-summer peak, elderly suicides were associated with actual weather, increasing with higher mean daily temperature […]

The evolution of the phenomenon of burning charcoal to complete suicide by carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning (an increasingly common method of completing suicide in Hong Kong since 1998), was explored in the current study. It was found that CO poisoning by burning charcoal rose from 0% of all Hong Kong suicides in 1996 & 1997 […]

The authors examine increase brain weight in suicide victims, suggesting that it may be related to previously demonstrated increased amygdala blood flow & subsequent amygdala enlargement due to the increased processing of emotional information. (6 refs)

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The authors investigate 2 fatalities out of a total of 38 suicidal emergencies which occured during a period of rapid weather changes in the winter of 1980-81. Demographic characteristics of these two samples, as compared to 28 other psychiatric emergencies presenting with non-specific restlessness during the same period were used as the basis for speculation […]

Data on self inflicted injuries by poisoning in the Winnipeg, Canada area were compared to the lunar cycle. A statistically significant lunar periodicity was demonstrated for the females in the sample with a greater number of cases occurring during the first quarter & a smaller number occurring during the third quarter of the lunar cycle. […]

The authors studied the association of certain weather variables with emergent psychiatric presentations, psychiatric admissions, incidence of violent crimes, & suicides in a metropolitan area. The data suggest that total numbers of acts of violence & emergency psychiatry visits are significantly associated with low barometric pressure. Psychiatric inpatient admissions & suicides are not associated with […]