Epidemiology of Suicide and its Associated Socio-demographic Factors in Patients Admitted to Emergency Department of Zahedan Khatam-Al-Anbia Hospital

BACKGROUND Suicide is a growing public health problem all over the world. Understanding the prevalence of suicide and its correlates is of great importance in planning programs to reduce the risk in different societies. OBJECTIVES The present study was conducted to assess the epidemiology of suicide and its associated risk factors in Sistan and Balouchestan Province, southeast of Iran. PATIENTS AND METHODS We investigated a total of 369 suicide cases admitted to the emergency department of Zahedan Khatam- Al- Anbia hospital between March 2010 and February 2012. Data was collected from the hospital information system (HIS) using a semi-structured questionnaire. Descriptive statistics and chi-square tests were used to identify the factors associated with suicidal behaviors. RESULTS A greater proportion of the study subjects (65%) were female. They were more likely to be young (43.5% in the age group of 16 to 25 years) and illiterate or have a primary school education (20.9% and 48.8%, respectively). Housewives and self-employed individuals and those with a low or medium income dominated the suicide cases. The most common method of suicide was burning (53.4%) followed by drug ingestion (23.8%). One third of the suicide cases occurred during spring. The case fatality rate was 49.6% and it was significantly associated with low income, summer time suicides, burning as a method of suicide. CONCLUSIONS This study highlights the burden of suicide and itspotential socio-demographic risk factors in Sistan and Blouchestan Province. This information has an implication for planning the preventive measures, policy making and future research.