Lithium in drinking water

In their short report, Ohgami et al 1 reported lithium levels in drinking water and linked them to the risk of suicide. Adjusting for differences in age structures between centres using standardised mortality ratios (SMRs) is unlikely to account for all important sources of confounding, so that the...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:British journal of psychiatry 2010-02, Vol.196 (2), p.159-159
Main Authors: Schrauzer, Gerhard N, Shrestha, Krishna P
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Age differences
Confounding Factors (Epidemiology)
Dietary intake
Drinking water
Humans
Lithium
Lithium - analysis
Psychiatry
Research Design
Statistical analysis
Suicide
Suicide - statistics & numerical data
Suicides & suicide attempts
Water Supply - analysis
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Summary:In their short report, Ohgami et al 1 reported lithium levels in drinking water and linked them to the risk of suicide. Adjusting for differences in age structures between centres using standardised mortality ratios (SMRs) is unlikely to account for all important sources of confounding, so that the possibility of residual confounding must be considered a major qualifier when considering these results, rather than details to be addressed in future studies. 3 The potential reasons behind the difference in lithium levels in the drinking water samples in the different municipalities are also not explained. Apart from the issue of dietary intake of lithium noted in the letter by Desai & Chaturvedi, 4 there is the question of where people source most of their drinking water, and the use of bottled water.
ISSN:0007-1250
1472-1465
DOI:10.1192/bjp.196.2.159