Epidemiology of Suicide in Cuba, 1987–2014

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Autor principal: Beatriz Corona-Miranda
Formato: Artículo científico
Lenguaje:en
Publicado: Medical Education Cooperation with Cuba 2016
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author Beatriz Corona-Miranda
author_facet Beatriz Corona-Miranda
contents Epidemiology of Suicide in Cuba, 1987–2014 Beatriz Corona-Miranda Karen Alfonso-Sagué Mariela Hernández-Sánchez Paula Lomba-Acevedo Medicina Cuba death Suicide mental health suicide attempt INTRODUCTION Suicide is a health problem infl uenced by biological, genetic, psychological, social and economic factors. It is responsible for 50% of violent deaths in the male population, worldwide, and 71% in the female. In the Americas, 65,000 deaths by suicide occur every year. It is the ninth most frequent cause of death in Cuba, and third among people aged 10–19. OBJECTIVE Characterize the epidemiology of suicide in Cuba from 1987 to 2014. METHODS A retrospective descriptive study was conducted. The information comprised all records of death by suicide from January 1, 1987 to December 31, 2014, in the Cuban Ministry of Public Health’s National Statistics Division database. The variables were sex, age, skin color, employment status/occupation, marital status, and method of suicide. Crude and age-standardized mortality rates and age–sex specifi c mortality rates were calculated, all per 100,000 population, as well as the sex ratio. Relative change over the series was calculated as a percentage. Distribution of suicides by variable was calculated and proportions expressed as percentages. RESULTS A total of 51,113 deaths by suicide were reported (annual average 1825), of which 34,671 (67.8%) were among men. The sex ratio was 2.1:1 for the entire study period, and 3.9:1 for 2011–2014. Over the course of the period studied, age-standardized suicide rates decreased from 23.9 to 10.8 per 100,000 population (54.8% reduction). The group aged ≥60 years had the highest average agestandardized rate, 44.6 per 100,000 population. The highest suicide burden by age was in the group aged 20–59 years (60.5%). By skin color, the highest burden was in those recorded as white, 68.9%. By marital status, the highest burden was in persons with a stable partner (46.7%), and by employment status/occupation, in retired (25.9%). The most commonly used method was hanging (59.4%). CONCLUSIONS Over the course of about three decades, suicide mortality rates have declined by almost half and they are still slightly higher than overall rates in the Americas. The most commonly used method is hanging. The sex ratio is greater than two and has increased over time. The highest rates occur in the group aged ≥60 years, but fi ner stratifi cation is needed to identify an age-related risk trend. In view of Cuba’s aging population, these results are of interest for epidemiology and public health. 2016 artículo científico 1555-7960 https://www.redalyc.org/articulo.oa?id=437546762005 en http://www.redalyc.org/revista.oa?id=4375 MEDICC Review application/pdf Medical Education Cooperation with Cuba MEDICC Review (Estados Unidos de América) Num.3 Vol.18
format Artículo científico
id redalyc_437546762005
institution Redalyc
language en
publishDate 2016
publisher Medical Education Cooperation with Cuba
spellingShingle Epidemiology of Suicide in Cuba, 1987–2014
Beatriz Corona-Miranda
Medicina
Cuba
death
Suicide
mental health
suicide attempt
Epidemiology of Suicide in Cuba, 1987–2014 Beatriz Corona-Miranda Karen Alfonso-Sagué Mariela Hernández-Sánchez Paula Lomba-Acevedo Medicina Cuba death Suicide mental health suicide attempt INTRODUCTION Suicide is a health problem infl uenced by biological, genetic, psychological, social and economic factors. It is responsible for 50% of violent deaths in the male population, worldwide, and 71% in the female. In the Americas, 65,000 deaths by suicide occur every year. It is the ninth most frequent cause of death in Cuba, and third among people aged 10–19. OBJECTIVE Characterize the epidemiology of suicide in Cuba from 1987 to 2014. METHODS A retrospective descriptive study was conducted. The information comprised all records of death by suicide from January 1, 1987 to December 31, 2014, in the Cuban Ministry of Public Health’s National Statistics Division database. The variables were sex, age, skin color, employment status/occupation, marital status, and method of suicide. Crude and age-standardized mortality rates and age–sex specifi c mortality rates were calculated, all per 100,000 population, as well as the sex ratio. Relative change over the series was calculated as a percentage. Distribution of suicides by variable was calculated and proportions expressed as percentages. RESULTS A total of 51,113 deaths by suicide were reported (annual average 1825), of which 34,671 (67.8%) were among men. The sex ratio was 2.1:1 for the entire study period, and 3.9:1 for 2011–2014. Over the course of the period studied, age-standardized suicide rates decreased from 23.9 to 10.8 per 100,000 population (54.8% reduction). The group aged ≥60 years had the highest average agestandardized rate, 44.6 per 100,000 population. The highest suicide burden by age was in the group aged 20–59 years (60.5%). By skin color, the highest burden was in those recorded as white, 68.9%. By marital status, the highest burden was in persons with a stable partner (46.7%), and by employment status/occupation, in retired (25.9%). The most commonly used method was hanging (59.4%). CONCLUSIONS Over the course of about three decades, suicide mortality rates have declined by almost half and they are still slightly higher than overall rates in the Americas. The most commonly used method is hanging. The sex ratio is greater than two and has increased over time. The highest rates occur in the group aged ≥60 years, but fi ner stratifi cation is needed to identify an age-related risk trend. In view of Cuba’s aging population, these results are of interest for epidemiology and public health. 2016 artículo científico 1555-7960 https://www.redalyc.org/articulo.oa?id=437546762005 en http://www.redalyc.org/revista.oa?id=4375 MEDICC Review application/pdf Medical Education Cooperation with Cuba MEDICC Review (Estados Unidos de América) Num.3 Vol.18
title Epidemiology of Suicide in Cuba, 1987–2014
topic Medicina
Cuba
death
Suicide
mental health
suicide attempt
url https://www.redalyc.org/articulo.oa?id=437546762005