Suicide mortality in India: a nationally representative survey

Abstract

Summary Background There are few epidemiological studies of suicide in India. Methods A nationally representative mortality survey determined the cause of death occurring in 1·1 million homes in 6671 small areas chosen randomly from all parts of India. Two trained physicians independently assigned codes to the causes of death, based on a nonmedical surveyor’s field interview with household respondents. Findings About 3% of deaths at ages 15 years and older (2684/95 335) were due to suicide. This corresponds to about 187 000 suicide deaths in India in 2010 at these ages (115 000 men and 72 000 women; age-standardised rates per 100 000 at ages 15 years and older of 26·3 for men and 17·5 for women). For suicide deaths at ages 15 years and older 40% percent of male suicides and 56% of female suicides occurred at ages 15–29 years. A 15 year old in India had an approximate cumulative risk of 1·3% of dying before age 80 years by suicide; men had higher risk (1·7%) than women (1·0%), with especially high risks in South India (3·5% among men and 1·8% among women). Suicide risks were higher in educated versus illiterate adults. About half of the suicides were from poisoning, much of which was pesticide. At ages 15–29 years, suicide accounted for nearly as many deaths as transport accidents in men and maternal deaths in women. Interpretation Suicide death rates in India are amongst the highest in the world. A large proportion of suicides occur at younger ages, especially in women. Much of Indian suicides may be avoidable, starting with control of access to pesticides. Funding U.S. National Institutes of Health

How Search Engine Data Enhance the Understanding of Determinants of Suicide in India and Inform Prevention: Observational Study (Preprint)

“…However, evidence from other studies shows that the NCRB's suicide rate data is grossly underreported. For instance, WHO reported 170,000 cases of suicide deaths in India, which is about 35,000 higher than the NCRB's data [3]. Similarly, the Registrar General of India implemented a nationally representative mortality survey indicating that about 3% of the surveyed deaths (2,684 of 95,335) in individuals aged 15 years or older were due to suicide, corresponding to about 187,000 suicide deaths in India in 2010 (as reported in Patel [3]).…”

“…There seems to be consensus that young people aged 15-29 are particularly at risk. Patel [3] found that 40% of suicides among men, and 56% of suicides among women occurred between the ages of 15 and 29.…”

“…Patel [3] on the other hand, found a rate of 26.3 suicides among boys and men over 15 per 100,000 people compared to 17.5 for girls and womendemonstrating the need for more clarity. The paper also found that Indian boys and men had a 1.7% cumulative risk of dying by suicide between the ages of 15 and 80, compared to a 1.0% risk among girls and women [4].…”

“…A study reported that approximately 16,000 farmers in India commit suicide every year [10]. Patel [3] found that about half of suicide deaths in India arose from poisoning, especially resulting from the ingestion of pesticides.…”

“…Moreover, analysis (if any) of suicide records is limited to demographic correlations. Patel [3], for instance, only focused on age-and sex-variables to analyze the survey findings.…”