Abstract
Rates of prescriptions of antidepressants and suicide are inversely correlated at an epidemiological level. Less attention has been paid to relationships between other drugs used in mental health and suicide rates. Here we tested relationships between prescriptions of anxiolytics and antipsychotics and suicide rates in Scotland. Suicide rates were inversely correlated with prescriptions of antidepressants and antipsychotics over 14 years (2004-2018), and positively with prescriptions of anxiolytics. This illustrates the role of medications used in mental health in suicide prevention, and highlights the importance of identifying causal mechanisms that link anxiolytics with suicide.
Highlights
Suicide rates were inversely correlated with prescriptions of antidepressants and antipsychotics over 14 years (2004–2018), and positively with prescriptions of anxiolytics
Negative relationships have been reported between rates of prescription of antidepressants and population suicide rates in adults in the USA,[2] Europe[3] and Australia.[4]
This trend may, be moderated by gender, as female suicide rates were shown to be reduced with a corresponding increase in antidepressant sales in Italy, whereas male rates increased.[5]
Summary
Prescriptions of all three categories of medication significantly predicted male and female suicide rates (Table 1). Prescriptions of antipsychotics were related to reduced suicide rates in men (β = −0.44, P < 0.001) and women (β = −0.27, P < 0.001), as were prescriptions of antidepressants (men: β = −0.49, P < 0.001; women: β = −0.28, P < 0.001). Prescriptions of HAB, were associated with increased suicide rates in men (β = 0.41, P < 0.001) and women (β = 0.24, P < 0.005)
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