Seasonal variation of suicide in South Africa

Flisher, Alan J.; Parry, Charles D. H.; Bradshaw, D.; Juritz, June

doi:10.1016/s0165-1781(96)02974-5

Cited by 68 publications

(53 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…Altamura et al [3] found a signifi cant suicide peak related to seasonal variation in Cagliary, Italy. In the southern hemisphere, Trucco [4] and Flisher et al [5] found a similar pattern of seasonality of suicides to the northern hemisphere, with a signifi cant increase in springtime.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 83%

Seasonal Variation in Suicidal Deaths in Chile: Its Relationship to Latitude

Heerlein¹,

Valeria²,

Medina³

2006

Psychopathology

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Background: Studies in the northern and southern hemispheres consistently identified seasonal influences on monthly and semester suicide distribution. The variations of sunlight exposure in zones of increasing latitude has been suggested as one of the most plausible explanations for this phenomenon. Some recent studies in the northern hemisphere could not find seasonal asymmetries of suicides. The current study examines the monthly, seasonal and semester distribution of suicidal deaths in Chile and the influence of seasons in zones of low latitude as compared with regions of high or very high latitude, trying to determine if a seasonal pattern still exists in a country of the southern hemisphere. Methods: Monthly, seasonal and semester suicidal data over the period 1995–1999 were examined for the whole sample and for gender-specific subgroups in Chile. Four different latitudinal zones were analyzed separately, in order to investigate the effect of the photoperiod on suicide distribution. Results were analyzed by χ² tests for multinomials, as an overall measure of deviation. Results: We found a significant unimodal springtime peak for both genders in the global territory. Among the 4,710 male and 829 female suicides reported in this period there were no gender differences in the seasonal pattern of suicidal deaths. When divided into four different latitudinal zones, the regions with low latitude (north of the country) showed no significant differences, while central and southern zones (higher latitude) show a significant springtime pattern. In the extreme south of the country, no significant differences were found, probably due to the very small number of cases. Conclusion: The study confirms the existence of a unimodal springtime peak of suicides in Chile, but not in the zone of low latitude. Results support the notion that the seasonal impact on suicidal distribution is a function of photoperiod.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 83%

Seasonal Variation in Suicidal Deaths in Chile: Its Relationship to Latitude

Heerlein¹,

Valeria²,

Medina³

2006

Psychopathology

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“…Since the review of Goodwin and Jamison [7], there have been dozens of additional studies that have replicated consistent late spring peaks in suicide in nearly all of the largest datasets, including in the northern hemisphere (in those studies that reported both a monthly peak and a total n for suicides), the USA (May; n = 649,843, the present study), Japan (April; n = 501,950 [29]), Sweden (May; n = 161,182 [30]), Italy (May; n = 141,180 [31]), Finland (May; n = 96,159 [30]), England (January; n = 92,909 [32]), Austria (May; n = 67,741 [33]), Mexico (May; n = 64,298 [34]), Spain (July; n = 42,905 [35]), Denmark (May; n = 37,987 [36]), Switzerland (May/June; n = 37,518 [37]), Norway (May; n = 20,156 [38]), China (May; n = 14,450 [39]), and Ireland (April; n = 7,899 [40]). In the southern hemisphere, reciprocal spring peaks have been found in Australia (November; n = 57,936 [41]), South Africa (October; n = 16,389 [42]), and São Paulo, Brazil (November; n = 6,916 [43]). Thus, the yearly spring peak in suicides has persisted throughout the globe for over a century since it was first identified in 1897.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chris Cornell, the Black Hole Sun, and the Seasonality of Suicide

Schwartz¹

2019

Neuropsychobiology

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Purpose: Seattle-inspired rock and roll superstar Chris Cornell died by suicide in May 2017. In the northern hemisphere, May represents the peak of the widely replicated but still unexplained seasonal spring rhythm in suicide. Years earlier, Cornell had suffered openly from recurrent bouts of severe depression, and his early musical lyrics do indeed suggest an enduring sensitivity to the vicissitudes of depressed and suicidal states. Cornell’s most famous song, Black Hole Sun, suggests a mixed mood state, the incidence of which also peaks in the spring. The present work explores Cornell’s May suicide from a chronobiologic perspective. Methods: Review of Cornell’s lyrics and literature on suicide. Results: Cornell’s lyrics contain clear indicators of mixed depressive and seasonal imagery, highlighting 3 fundamental axioms of suicidology: (1) the yearly suicide rhythm peaks in May in the northern hemisphere, (2) mixed depressive states are particularly lethal, and (3) the suicide risk increases dramatically when recovering from depression and mood turns mixed. Conclusions: Cornell, in his life and music, left us with a novel and important hypothesis about the spring seasonality of suicide, namely, that the yearly suicide risk becomes maximal when winter turns to spring and there emerges a deadly mixed mood state under a May photoperiod, i.e., the suicide risk is maximal when a Black Hole Sun occurs in May. It is hoped that Cornell’s legacy and sensitive hypothesis inspire research into the etiology and treatment of the spring seasonality of suicide risk and mixed mood states. Limitations: The Cornell hypothesis was formulated based in part on several speculative inferences regarding the course of his functioning just prior to his suicide.

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“…Studies in the Southern hemisphere include an analysis in South Africa, a country located in a climatic temperate zone, where seasonal variation was observed in the occurrence of suicides. 2 Similarly, in South America, a study was carried out in the city of Santiago, Chile, where again a seasonal pattern was found in the rates of suicide. 3 The mechanism underlying seasonality is not yet known.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…2,9 The tropical climate and urbanization are two important aspects that express a characteristic trait of this study. The seasonality of the climatic attributes in temperate zones differs from tropical zones.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%