HealthMED, cilt.5, sa.5, ss.1085-1090, 2011 (SCI-Expanded)
Objectives: Suicide is one of the most important public health problems worldwide. The aim of this study was to determine differences between completed and attempted suicide groups in terms of gender, age groups and methods of suicide. Design: Retrospective study Setting: Antakya State Hospital, Hatay,Turkey Subjects: Three hundred and eighty-five completed and attempted suicide cases during the 3-year period between 2007 and 2009 Main Outcome Measures: Completed and attempted suicide rates by age, gender, methods of suicide, during the study years Results: Attempted suicide rate per 100,000 was 27.25, and completed suicide rate was 2.64 per 100,000. Overall case fatality rate was 8.83. There was a male predominance in completed suicides, and contrarily, a female predominance in attempted suicides (p<0.001). Suicide attempt rate was higher among the young, and case fatality rate was higher in elderly (p<0.001). Self-poisoning with drug overdose was the most common method in attempted suicides, and hanging was the most common method in completed suicides (p<0.001). The decrease in the attempted suicide rate was significant, and it accounted for the significant decrease in the overall suicide rate over the study period (p<0.001).However, there was no significant change in the completed suicide rates over the years (p>0.05). Conclusions: Suicide rate was lower than the rate in western societies. Age and gender were significant factors for suicides The annual suicide attempt rates have decreased while the completed suicide rates have not changed over the years.