The Influence of a Major Disaster on Suicide Risk in the Population

The authors investigated the relationship between the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks & suicide risk in New York City from 1990-2006. The average monthly rate over the study period was 0.56 per 100,000 people. The monthly rate after September 2001 was 0.11 per 100,000 people lower as compared to the rate in the period before. However, the rate of change in suicide was not significantly different before & after the disaster & regression discontinuity analysis indicated no change at this date. There was no net change in the suicide rate in New York City attributable to this diaster, suggesting that factors other than exposure to traumatic events may be key drivers of suicide risk in this context. (45 refs.) JA