SPATIAL ANALYSIS OF SUICIDE IN NORTHEASTERN BRAZIL AND ASSOCIATED SOCIAL FACTORS

Taynara Lais Silva,George Jó Bezerra Sousa,José Claudio Garcia Lira Neto,Thatiana Araújo Maranhão,Isaac Gonçalves Da Silva,Geovana Almeida Dos Santos Araujo

doi:10.1590/1980-265x-tce-2021-0096

Abstract

ABSTRACT Objective: to analyze the spatial pattern of mortality due to suicide and social factors associated with its occurrence. Method: an ecological study that used data from the Mortality Information System (Sistema de Informação sobre Mortalidade, SIM) from 2008 to 2018. The unadjusted and Bayesian mean mortality rates were calculated for each northeastern municipality and the Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) and Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) non-spatial and spatial regression models were used. Results: the highest mortality rates due to suicide are especially concentrated in the municipalities of Piauí and Ceará. The predictive variables of suicide were as follows: Gini Index (p<0.001), unemployment rate ≥ 18 years old (p<0.001), Municipal Human Development Index (p<0.001), illiteracy rate ≥ 18 years old (p<0.001), per capita income (p<0.001), percentage of people in homes with inadequate walls (p=0.003), percentage of people in homes with inadequate water supply and sewage (p<0.001), and percentage of people vulnerable to poverty who commute for more than one hour to work (p<0.001). Conclusion: eight predictive variables of mortality due to suicide in the Northeast region were identified that act as risk or protective factors, depending on the municipality under study.

Highlights

Suicide is a complex and universal human phenomenon that represents a serious public health problem worldwide[1]
This study aims at: analyzing the spatial pattern of mortality due to suicide and social factors associated with its occurrence
Eight social factors associated with mortality due to suicide in the Northeast region were identified, namely: Gini Index, unemployment rate of people ≥ 18 years old, Municipal Human Development Index (MHDI), illiteracy rate of people ≥ 18 years old, per capita income, percentage of people in homes with inadequate walls, percentage of people in homes with inadequate water supply and sewage, and percentage of people vulnerable to poverty who commute for more than one hour to work

Summary

Introduction

Suicide is a complex and universal human phenomenon that represents a serious public health problem worldwide[1]. Most of the self-provoked deaths globally occur in low- and middle-income countries[3], such as Brazil. In this context, the United Nations (UN) has released strategic documents such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Brazil is among the ten countries with the highest number of suicides worldwide[2]. Among the Brazilian regions with the highest rates, the Northeast and the Midwest stand out[5] In this scenario, Piauí is the state with the highest suicide rate in the Northeast region, as it presented a 221.7% increase in deaths from this cause in the last ten years, and the state capital, Teresina, has the second highest mortality rate due to suicide in young individuals among all the Brazilians capitals (14.4 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants)[6]

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Discussion

Conclusion