Summary OBJECTIVE: The number of suicides assisted by right-todie associations has increased in recent years in Switzerland. The aim of our study was to compare time trends in rates of assisted and unassisted suicide from 1991–2008. METHODS: The Swiss National Cohort is a longitudinal study of mortality in the Swiss population; based on linkage of census data with mortality records up to 2008. The Federal Statistical Office coded suspected assisted suicides from 1998 onwards; and from 2003 onwards right-to-die associations reported the suicides they assisted. We used Poisson regression to analyse trends in rates of suicide per 100'000 person-years, by gender and age groups (15–34, 35–64, 65–94 years). RESULTS: A total of 7'940'297 individuals and 24'842 suicides were included. In women, rates changed little in the younger age groups but increased in 65–94-year-olds, due to an increase in suicide by poisoning (from 5.1 to 17.2 per 100'000; p <0.001). An increase in suicides by poisoning was also observed in older men (from 8.6 to 18.2; p<0.001). Most suicides by poisoning were assisted. In men, suicide rates declined in all age groups, driven by declines in suicide with firearms. CONCLUSIONS: Research is needed to gain a better understanding of the reasons for the tripling of assisted suicide rates in older women, and the doubling of rates in older men, of attitudes and vulnerabilities of those choosing assisted suicide, and of access to palliative care. Rates of assisted suicide should be monitored; including data on patient characteristics and underlying comorbidities.
BackgroundIn Switzerland assisted suicide is legal if no self-interest is involved.AimsTo compare the strength and direction of associations with sociodemographic factors between assisted and unassisted suicides.MethodWe calculated rates and used Cox and logistic regression models in a longitudinal study of the Swiss population.ResultsAnalyses were based on 5 004 403 people, 1301 assisted and 5708 unassisted suicides from 2003 to 2008. The rate of unassisted suicides was higher in men than in wo...
While assisted suicide (AS) is strictly restricted in many countries, it is not clearly regulated by law in Switzerland. This imbalance leads to an influx of people—‘suicide tourists’—coming to Switzerland, mainly to the Canton of Zurich, for the sole purpose of committing suicide. Political debate regarding ‘suicide tourism’ is taking place in many countries. Swiss medicolegal experts are confronted with these cases almost daily, which prompted our scientific investigation of the phenomenon. Th...
Suicide is the second leading cause of death in youth globally; however, there is uncertainty about how best to intervene. Suicide rates are typically higher in males than females, while the converse is true for suicide attempts. We review this “gender paradox” in youth, and in particular, the age-dependency of these sex/gender differences and the developmental mechanisms that may explain them. Epidemiologic, genetic, neurodevelopmental and psychopathological research have identified suicidal be...
Background It is unclear whether there is a direct link between economic crises and changes in suicide rates. Aims The Lopez-Ibor Foundation launched an initiative to study the possible impact of the economic crisis on European suicide rates. Method Data was gathered and analysed from 29 European countries and included the number of deaths by suicide in men and women, the unemployment rate, the gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, the annual economic growth rate and inflation. Results There ...
Last. Matthias Egger(Federal Statistical Office)H-Index: 168
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Background: In Switzerland, assisted suicide is legal but there is concern that vulnerable or disadvantaged groups are more likely to die in this way than other people. We examined socio-economic factors associated with assisted suicide. Methods: We linked the suicides assisted by right-to-die associations during 2003–08 to a census-based longitudinal study of the Swiss population. We used Cox and logistic regression models to examine associations with gender, age, marital status, education, rel...
BACKGROUND Legal in some European countries and US states, physician-assisted suicide and voluntary active euthanasia remain under debate in these and other countries. OBJECTIVES The aim of the study was to examine numbers, characteristics, and trends over time for assisted dying in regions where these practices are legal: Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Oregon, Washington, and Montana. DESIGN This was a systematic review of journal articles and official reports. Medline and E...
ObjectiveFirearms are the most common method of suicide among young men in Switzerland. From March 2003 through February 2004, the number of Swiss soldiers was halved as a result of an army reform (Army XXI), leading to a decrease in the availability of guns nationwide. The authors investigated the patterns of the overall suicide rate and the firearm suicide rate before and after the reform.MethodUsing a naturalistic study design, the authors compared suicide rates before (1995–2003) and after t...
Summary BACKGROUND: The majority of suicides had never had contact with the mental health care system. The aim of this study is to investigate the specific characteristics of this particular group. METHODS: Coroners’ files were examined for all 256 suicide victims in the Canton of Lucerne between 2002 and 2006, together with the data from the files of the public psychiatric institutions for individuals who had been registered as patients. The sociodemographic, suicidological and clinical variabl...
AbstractAssisted suicide is allowed in 3 states of the United States (Oregon, Washington, Montana) but only if performed by a physician.On the opposite, in Switzerland, at the beginning of the 20th century, the Swiss Penal Code referred to assisted suicide in the context of honor or an unhappy love
#1Heidi Hjelmeland(NTNU: Norwegian University of Science and Technology)H-Index: 32
#2Gudrun Dieserud(FHI: Norwegian Institute of Public Health)H-Index: 13
Last. Antoon A. Leenaars(FHI: Norwegian Institute of Public Health)H-Index: 5
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One of the most established “truths” in suicidology is that almost all (90 % or more) of those who kill themselves suffer from one or more mental disorders, and a causal link between the two is implied. Psychological autopsy (PA) studies constitute one main evidence base for this conclusion. However, there has been little reflection on the reliability and validity of this method. For example, psychiatric diagnoses are assigned to people who have died by suicide by interviewing a few of the relat...
ABSTRACT null null Objective null To examine Oregon's Death-with-Dignity-Act (DWDA) death and suicide patterns among women age 65 and older, relative to patterns among same-age men, as a way to assess DWDA's impact on older adult women, a group considered vulnerable. null null null Design null Oregon's 1998–2018 DWDA- and suicide-mortality rates and confidence intervals were calculated. null null null Results null Between 1998 and 2018 women age 65 and older represented 46% of DWDA deaths and 16...
The ongoing agricultural reforms present serious challenges for Swiss farmers. This study shows a higher rate of suicide in farmers compared to non-farmers in Switzerland, with the gap widening increasingly after 2006.
#2Brenda Spencer(UNIL: University of Lausanne)H-Index: 16
Last. Ralf J. Jox(UNIL: University of Lausanne)H-Index: 24
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OBJECTIVES: The wish to die may be different in geriatric patients than in younger terminally ill patients. This study aimed to develop and validate instruments for assessing the wish to die in geriatric patients. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Geriatric rehabilitation unit of a university hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Patients (N = 101) aged 65 years or older with a Mini-Mental State Examination score of 20 or higher, admitted consecutively over a 5-month period. MEASUREMENTS: The Schedule o...
INTRODUCTION In many countries, mortality due to suicide is higher among people living with HIV than in the general population. We aimed to analyse trends in suicide mortality before and after the introduction of triple combination antiretroviral therapy (cART), and to identify risk factors associated with death from suicide in Switzerland. METHODS We analysed data from the Swiss HIV Cohort Study from the pre-cART (1988-1995), earlier cART (1996-2008) and later cART (2009-2017) eras. We used mul...
The author presents two examples of suicide by disabled people, one unassisted and one assisted. There are points of dissimilarity but also points of similarity. The language of “assisted dying” is misleading especially when the person is not terminally ill. In contrast, the language of “assisted suicide” is appropriate and is used in Switzerland and the Benelux countries. Guidance is needed for media reporting of assisted suicides. In addition to avoidance of certain details and ways of framing...
Abstract Background In new strategies towards of suicide prevention the best approach currently is based on specific method had specific risk factors. Therefore in this study we aimed to find out the association between socio-demographic factors and methods in completed suicide, 2011–2016, Ilam province. Methods A cross-sectional study, 2011–2016, was conducted. A total of 540 completed suicides were recruited to the study. Data were collected by systematic registration suicide data (SRSD) and L...
Aufgrund des zunehmenden Alters in der Bevolkerung leiden immer mehr Menschen unter chronischen Krankheiten und erhohter Gebrechlichkeit, die die Lebensqualitat beeintrachtigen. Damit verbunden entscheiden sich immer haufiger Betroffene, ihrem Leben aktiv ein Ende zu setzen. Neben Methoden des allein ausgefuhrten Suizids wird hierbei auch auf arztlichen Beistand zuruckgegriffen. Beim „assistierten Suizid“ wird die zum Tod fuhrende Handlung zwar von der Person selbst begangen, der Arzt spielt abe...
Zusammenfassung. Erkennung von Suizidalitat spielt auch im somatischen Spital eine wichtige Rolle: Bei Patienten die nach einem Suizidversuch oder sonstigen selbstschadigenden Handlungen auf der Notfallstation vorstellig werden sowie bei hospitalisierten Patienten im Rahmen einer psychiatrischen Erkrankung und/oder einer psychosozialen Krise. Auch somatische Erkrankungen wie Krebs, Epilepsie, COPD, Asthma, Stroke und chronische Schmerzen erhohen das Suizidrisiko. Um Suizide und Suizidversuche zu...
