Letter to the editor. Recently released 1985 mortality data from the National Center for Health Statistics raises doubts about the conclusion of Holinger that suicide among 15-24 year olds has leveled off. Holinger replies that in using epidemiological data to understand a phenomenon as complex & multidimensional as youth suicide, it seems best to examine data over extended time periods to avoid false conclusions based on short term trends. Supportive statistics are cited by the author. (GW)