Gender and homicides in Paraná: a descriptive analysis from an ecological perspective (2018-2021)

Abstract

Violence is considered a public health issue as it is one of the main causes of premature mortality in the world, resulting in several impacts that affect the population. This is an ecological time series study on homicides between 2018 and 2021 carried out in the State of Paraná. Data were extracted from the Mortality Information System (SIM) by categories: gender, age, race/color, marital status, place of occurrence and IDC (X85 to Y09 and Y35 to Y36). Data analysis shows that 9,169 violent deaths occurred in the state during the period, 91.2% (8,365) of which were male and 8.7% (801) were female. Considering only the age group, the majority of homicides are between the ages of 20 and 29, totaling 3,349 deaths in the last 4 years, 93.3% (3,123) of male gender and 6.7% (226) of female gender. In this same age group, there is the largest percentage difference between genders. A greater similarity was observed between 5 and 9 years old, with the percentage of both genders equal to 50% (7). The data shows that the highest rate of female homicides, 36.1% (289) occurred at home, while 42.7% (3,572) of male deaths occurred on public roads. Firearm discharge (ICD: X93, X94 and X95) is the main cause of death for both genders, with males accounting for 61.5% (5,142) and females 43.6% (349) of the cases. Better understanding the categories that lead to homicide is a fundamental step towards creating more effective public policies to minimize homicides in Brazil and around the world.