Prevalence of Suicide by Self-immolation Among Children in Southern Iran

Abstract

Self-immolation is considered among the most rigorous acts of suicide. Lately, this act has increased in children. We evaluated the frequency of self-immolation among children in the largest burn referral center in southern Iran. This cross-sectional study was conducted from Jan 2014 to the end of 2018 at a tertiary referral burn and plastic surgery healthcare center in southern Iran. Subjects were pediatric self-immolation burn patients registered as outpatients or inpatients. The patients' parents were contacted regarding any incomplete information. Among 913 children admitted due to burn injuries, 14 (1.55%) were admitted with an impression of suicidal self-immolation. Among self-immolation patients, the ages ranged from 11 to 15 years (mean: 13.64±1.33), and the average burnt percentage of total body surface area was 67.07±31.19%. The male-to-female ratio was 1:1, and the majority were from urban areas (57.1%). The most frequent cause of burn injury was fire (92.9%). There was no history of family mental illness or suicide among the patients, and only one of the patients had an underlying disease of intellectual disability. The mortality percentage was 64.3%. The percentage of childhood suicidal attempts by burn injuries was alarmingly high among children aged 11 to 15. While contrary to many reports, we reported this phenomenon to be relatively similar between genders, and also between urban and rural patients. Compared with accidental burn injuries, the self-immolation group had significantly higher age and burn percentage, and were more frequently caused by fire, occurred outdoors, and resulted in mortality.

Cohort analysis of 50% lethal area (LA50) and associating factors in burn patients based on quality improvements and health policies

“…When controlling for patient’s outcomes, there was no significant association between intentional injuries and mortality. Self-immolation is a devastating action and method of suicide with high fatality rates, and has been reported in our country 34 , 35 . Although univariant analysis reported suicide as a risk factor for unfavorable outcomes in our study cohort, the multivariable model showed no correlation between the two.…”

Challenges and reactions of families of women survived self-immolation: A qualitative study in western Iran.

“…Suicide kills thousands of people every year (Furqatovich & Sattorovich, 2022; Khademi et al, 2022; Pirkis et al, 2021). Self-immolation is a method of suicide where someone ends their life by setting themselves on fire (Cleary et al, 2021; Shahriarirad et al, 2023). Self-immolation is common in Africa, India, the Middle East, and Iran (El Hayek et al, 2022; Mohammadi et al, 2020).…”