Particularities of suicide in the elderly. A population-based study

Background and aims : Suicide in later life stages is of growing concern as the life expectancy of Western populations is rising. Therefore, a population-based study concerning elderly suicide was undertaken. Methods : The study included 1008 suicides in Middle Franconia (Bavaria/Germany) between 20...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Aging clinical and experimental research 2009-12, Vol.21 (6), p.470-474
Main Authors: Biermann, Teresa, Sperling, Wolfgang, Bleich, Stefan, Kornhuber, Johannes, Reulbach, Udo
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Cause of Death
Child
Female
Geriatrics/Gerontology
Germany
Health Status
Humans
Male
Medicine
Medicine & Public Health
Mental Health
Middle Aged
Motivation
Older people
Original Articles
Population
Population-based studies
Risk Factors
Suicide - psychology
Suicide - statistics & numerical data
Suicides & suicide attempts
Time Factors
Young Adult
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Summary:Background and aims : Suicide in later life stages is of growing concern as the life expectancy of Western populations is rising. Therefore, a population-based study concerning elderly suicide was undertaken. Methods : The study included 1008 suicides in Middle Franconia (Bavaria/Germany) between 2004 and 2007. Data was analyzed regarding gender, method chosen, initiating motive and chronobiological factors at the time of death. Results : Higher rates of suicides were observed in the population at risk over 65 years old, in both sexes (age-adjusted suicide rate per 100,000 inhabitants for men: 42.52; 95% CI 8.64–37.47; for women: 8.64; 95% CI 6.81–10.96). There were significant differences regarding the method chosen (χ 2 =21.3; df=6; p=0.002) and the underlying motive, “mental/physical illness”, was the predominant Stressor (χ 2 =73.0; df=6; p
ISSN:1594-0667
1720-8319
DOI:10.1007/BF03327440