Nationwide suicides due to alcohol withdrawal symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic: A review of cases from media reports.

By the first week of August 2020, the novel coronavirus-2019 (COVID-19) had spread to over 275 countries, regions or territories, with over 19 million confirmed cases, and over 700,000 confirmed deaths worldwide (^{Worldometer, 2020}). The COVID-19 pandemic has affected people from all walks of life and all ages (^{Mamun and Griffiths, 2020a}). Anxiety as well as emotional anguish is known to be associated with widespread outbreaks of infectious diseases such as COVID-19 (^{Montemurro, 2020}). In 2003, during the SARS epidemic, social isolation and disengagement amongst the older adult population were reported to be among the probable reasons for an increase in their suicides (^{Cheung et al., 2008}). Strict spatial distancing measures, social isolation, and enforced quarantine can have a negative impact on an individual’s mental health. Such seclusion as well as societal disconnect associated with public health emergencies like the COVID-19 pandemic, clearly have the potential to impact several indices related to the psychological wellbeing of the general public (^{Satici et al., 2020}).