Epidemiology of Suicide in Western Odisha During COVID Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Analysis

Abstract

Introduction Suicide is the act of deliberately killing oneself. It is a leading cause of mortality worldwide. Each year, more than seven lakh people end their lives globally. India is the worst-affected country in Southeast Asia. Both the genders and all age groups are affected. The COVID pandemic has led to the disruption of routine life and business. The proportion of deaths due to suicide was 9.4% among all deaths reported for autopsies by a study in the same mortuary over a seven-year period. Increased stress and anxiety have been postulated to lead to suicide. Our study objective is to describe the epidemiology of suicide during the early COVID pandemic (lockdown period). Methods This is a record-based cross-sectional study. We have analyzed the post-mortem reports for six months starting from April 1, 2020. Descriptive analysis was performed with Epi Info version 7 (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC, Atlanta, GA, USA). Results During the study period, 340 cases were classified as deaths due to suicide, out of a total of 891 mortalities. The median age for females was 26.5 and for males, it was 30. The male to female ratio was 1.8:1. Most of the deceased (39.8%) were in their third decade, followed by the fourth decade (18.9%), second decade (15%), and fifth decade (12.98%), respectively. Poisoning was the leading method used for suicide, accounting for 238 (70.1%) deaths, followed by hanging (11.8%), burns (6.8%), jumping from a height (6.5%), and jumping in front of the train (4.13%). Self-immolation (burning) was a common mode of suicide for females. Most of the suicides (71.4%) took place from the evening to midnight. Conclusion There was a fourfold rise in suicides during the period compared to previous data. Productive age groups are affected more. A large-scale multi-centric study in community settings for estimation of the true burden is the need of the hour. A multi-sectorial public health approach is needed to prevent untimely death due to suicide.

The Demographic Profile of Suicidal Hanging Deaths in North India

“…In 2020, the maximum number (n=41. 11.61%) of suicide-hanging cases were recorded in our analysis, as suicidal rates increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, as documented in previous studies [24,25].…”

Epidemiology of suicide and suicide attempts in Jahrom district, Southern Iran in light of COVID pandemic: A prospective observational study

“…According to the results of a study in high and upper‐middle‐income countries, the number of suicides in the early months of the Covid‐19 pandemic was unchanged or decreased compared to the period before the pandemic 12 . In contrast, some studies shown through the covid‐19 epidemic have described higher rates of suicide in various nations, such as India, 3,13 Poland, 14 Bangladesh, 15 and Norway 16 . Nevertheless, social, health, political, cultural, and economic scenarios differ from country to country 11 .…”

“…Suicide is a deadly act that shows a person's desire to die 1 . Given by the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 700,000 persons die via suicide each year, and on average, one person commits suicide every 40 s, and it is the fourth cause of death among people aged 15−29 in the world 2,3 . The WHO also reports that in the last 45 years, the suicide rate has increased by 60% worldwide 2…”

“…1 Given by the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 700,000 persons die via suicide each year, and on average, one person commits suicide every 40 s, and it is the fourth cause of death among people aged 15−29 in the world. 2,3 The WHO also reports that in the last 45 years, the suicide rate has increased by 60% worldwide. 2 In general, suicide has been reported in all countries, but 77% of these occur in low-and middle-income nations.…”

“…3 reported a fourfold increase in Western Odisha, India, during COVID pandemic. This increase is consistent with hypothesized concepts of stress increased throughout a pandemic because of the fear of contracting COVID-19, economic problems, and discrimination 25,26.…”