Suicide methods in South Asia over two decades (2001–2020)

Arafat, S. M. Yasir; Ali, Syeda Ayat‐e‐Zainab; Menon, Vikas; Hussain, Fahad; Ansari, Daniyal Shabbir; Baminiwatta, Anuradha; Saleem, Tamkeen; Singh, Rakesh Kumar; Varadharajan, Natarajan; Biyyala, Deepika; Kar, Sujita Kumar; Khan, Murad Moosa

doi:10.1177/00207640211015700

Cited by 23 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 90 publications

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“…However, studies in this review that report suicide data from police records and hospital records identified hanging as the most common method of suicide for men and women. This, supports findings from a systematic review on methods of suicide in South Asia ( 53 ), which found that hanging was the most common method in India over two decades (2001–2020). Therefore, studies that examine gender differences using suicide data from the NCRB should be interpreted with caution.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

A Scoping Review of Gender Differences in Suicide in India

et al. 2022

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IntroductionMuch of the published literature on suicide comes from high income countries. In countries such as India, female suicide rates exceed the global suicide rate and suicide rates found in their male counterparts. Results from previous studies indicate that factors related to suicide among men and women in India are different from those seen in high-income countries. To date, no reviews have considered the relationship between gender and suicide in India. Therefore, the aim of this scoping review is to provide a comprehensive understanding of existing literature reporting gender differences in suicide rates, methods, risk factors and antecedent factors in India by reviewing published studies.MethodA scoping review was conducted to map the existing literature on gender differences in suicide in India. To identify peer-reviewed publications, online databases PsycINFO and Embase were searched. The search terms were [suicid* AND India*]. The searches took place in November 2020 and May 2021, with no language restrictions. Articles published from 2014 onwards from India were included. Reference lists of selected studies were searched for studies that could meet the inclusion criteria.ResultsThis review identified 17 studies that met the inclusion criteria. The ratio between women and men who die by suicide in India is much lower than in high-income countries. Hanging was found to be a more commonly used method of suicide among both men and women, in comparison to high-income countries where hanging is more common among men. This review also identified several gaps in the literature. There were few studies that examined suicide among transgender Indians. There was limited literature on gender differences in risk and protective factors for suicide. Limitations such as the omission of a lack of gender-based analyses in several studies and under-reporting of suicide rates were identified.ConclusionUnderstanding suicide within the context of individual countries is essential in designing culture-appropriate suicide prevention strategies. This review identified an urgent need to establish and evaluate suicide surveillance systems in India. Furthermore, additional research is warranted to understand suicide among individuals who identify outside the gender binary, and gender-specific risk and protective factors.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

A Scoping Review of Gender Differences in Suicide in India

et al. 2022

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“…A major cause of suicide is domestic violence [34]. However, domestic violence has many dimensions and shapes, which the previous studies did not uncover.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 80%

“…The literature does not present the root causes of suicides in the northern region of Pakistan. A few generic reasons such as domestic violence [34,48,65], mental diseases [66][67][68], economic reasons [63,64], competition in academic fields [28], and broken love affairs [48] are usually coined as the reasons for suicides. Understanding these generic causes does not allow us to devise effective solutions.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Thus, women living under domestic and gender violence were more inclined toward suicide [32]. Furthermore, women living in patriarchal societies like Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh are more vulnerable to completing or attempting suicide [33,34]. Most research states that interpersonal relationship disputes, domestic conflicts, and economic problems are the fundamental reasons for suicides in Pakistan [19,35,36].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mapping Institutional Interventions to Mitigate Suicides: A Study of Causes and Prevention

Ullah

Shah²,

Khan

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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Suicide is an extreme, tragic act and an important subject for social inquiry. It is the rising public health issue prevalent in the Himalayan range of Pakistan. The young and educated population is more prone to suicide instead of using this prime phase of age productively. Unfortunately, the suicide problem remains unaddressed, the causes remain undefined, solutions are not in the works, and in situations when others play a part in driving someone to commit suicide, no one is being held accountable. This study is aimed at uncovering the root causes of suicide and proposing some preventive measures to mitigate the problem. Our team studied three years’ worth of data (2017–2019) on suicides from the office of Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Chitral. In addition, we conducted semi-structured interviews of different stakeholders, including family members, neighbors, lawyers, and police personnel. The findings revealed that extended family pressures, the power dynamic between sustainers and dependents, family conflicts, and inheritance cases were the major causes of the domestic violence that preceded suicide attempts. Mental health issues, forced marriages, academic competitions, and flawed litigation processes were also among the leading causes of suicide. Awareness through education and religious sermons, strengthening healthcare organizations, restructuring family systems, establishing police complaint centers, effective prosecution processes, and imparting lifesaving skills have been identified as measures to prevent suicide. This study has theoretical and practical implications, as it adds certain novel variables regarding the causes and solutions of suicide to the existing body of literature and guides public authorities to strengthen institutions to intervene effectively.

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“…According to a systematic review and meta-analysis, the most common method of suicide in the Eastern Mediterranean Region of WHO was hanging (with a share of 39.7%, 95%CI: 26.8–52.7)[ 8 ]. Also, in almost all countries in Eastern Europe[ 4 ] and South Asia[ 9 ] hanging was the preferred method of suicide. During a 10-year period from 2004 to 2013 in India, poisoning as a method of suicide has declined in both genders aged 15-29 years, while hanging became the preferred method[ 10 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Trends in suicide by hanging, strangulation, and suffocation in Serbia, 1991-2020: A joinpoint regression and age-period-cohort analysis

Ilic¹,

Ilić²

2022

WJP

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BACKGROUND Hanging is one of the most commonly used methods for suicide in both sexes worldwide. In a number of countries, hanging mortality has increased over the last decades. Nevertheless, there is a scarcity of studies that have explored the patterns and trends for mortality of suicide by hanging on global, regional and national levels, as most evaluations are limited to certain populations. AIM To assess the trends of suicide mortality by hanging, strangulation, and suffocation in Serbia, from 1991 to 2020. METHODS This nationwide study, with epidemiological descriptive study design, was carried out based on official data. The age-standardized rates (ASRs, expressed per 100000 persons) were calculated by direct standardization, using the World Standard Population. Mortality trends from suicide by hanging were assessed using the joinpoint regression analysis: The average annual percent change (AAPC) with the corresponding 95% confidence interval (95%CI) was calculated. Age-period-cohort analysis was performed to address the possible underlying reasons for the observed suicide trends. RESULTS Over the 30-year period studied, there were 24340 deaths by hanging (17750 males and 6590 females) in Serbia. In 2020, the ASR of deaths by hanging was 4.5 per 100000 persons in both sexes together (7.6 in males vs 1.7 in females). The trends of suicide mortality by hanging decreased significantly between 1991 and 2020 in both males (AAPC = -1.7% per year; 95%CI: -2.0 to -1.4) and females (AAPC = - 3.5% per year; 95%CI: -3.9 to -3.1). Mortality rates of suicide by hanging had a continuously decreasing tendency in both sexes together in all age groups: The only exception was among males in 40-49 age group, with an increasing trend of suicide by hanging from 1991 to 2011 (by +0.3% per year). CONCLUSION The trends in suicide mortality by hanging have been decreasing in Serbia in the last three decades in both sexes, but this was more pronounced in women than in men. Despite the decreasing trends observed in mortality of suicide by hanging, further research is needed for better clarification of trends and help in suicide prevention in the future.

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Suicide methods in South Asia over two decades (2001–2020)

Cited by 23 publications

References 90 publications

A Scoping Review of Gender Differences in Suicide in India

A Scoping Review of Gender Differences in Suicide in India

Mapping Institutional Interventions to Mitigate Suicides: A Study of Causes and Prevention

Trends in suicide by hanging, strangulation, and suffocation in Serbia, 1991-2020: A joinpoint regression and age-period-cohort analysis

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