Abstract
To the Editor. — I was both astonished and saddened to find that in her recent editorial, Youth Suicide: The Physician's Role in Suicide Prevention, Blumenthal 1 did not discuss the impact of the repression of emerging awareness of homosexuality on the incidence of suicide among young people. The Institute for the Protection of Lesbian and Gay Youth, an educational and advocacy group for youth in New York City with 1000 or more clients per year, reports that 21% of their clients (both male and female) have attempted suicide before the age of 20 years. The incidence of suicide attempts among gay males is reported to be between 18% and 20%. 2 Clearly, these estimates represent more than an occasional youth. Blumenthal states that precipitating events for suicide among youth are often humiliating in nature, involving interpersonal problems or an impending disciplinary crisis. Being thrown out of the home, school,
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
