Abstract
BackgroundThe suicide rate in Canada decreased by 24% during the past four decades. However, rates vary between provinces and territories, and not all jurisdictions experienced the same changes. This study examined suicide rates over time in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador.MethodsWe used cross-sectional surveillance data from the Canadian Vital Statistics Death Database to examine suicide rates in Newfoundland and Labrador from 1981 to 2018. We calculated annual age-standardized suicide mortality rates and used joinpoint regression to estimate the average annual percent change (AAPC) in suicide rates overall and by sex, age group, and means of suicide.ResultsFrom 1981 to 2018, 1759 deaths by suicide were recorded among people in Newfoundland and Labrador. The age-standardized suicide mortality rate increased more than threefold over the study period, from 4.6 to 15.4 deaths per 100,000. The suicide rate was higher among males than females, and accounted for 83.1% of suicide deaths (n = 1462); the male-to-female ratio of suicide deaths was 4.9 to 1. The average annual percent change in suicide rates was higher among females than males (6.3% versus 2.0%). Age-specific suicide rates increased significantly for all age groups, except seniors (aged 65 or older); the largest increase was among youth aged 10 to 24 years old (AAPC 3.5; 95% CI, 1.6 to 5.5). The predominant means of suicide was hanging/strangulation/suffocation, which accounted for 43.8% of all deaths by suicide.ConclusionsThe suicide rate in Newfoundland and Labrador increased steadily between 1981 and 2018, which was in contrast to the national rate decline. The disparity between the provincial and national suicide rates and the variations by sex and age underscore the need for a public health approach to prevention that accounts for geographic and demographic differences in the epidemiology of suicide.
Highlights
The suicide rate in Canada decreased by 24% during the past four decades
From 1981 to 2018, there were 1759 deaths by suicide recorded among people aged 10 years or older in Newfoundland and Labrador
Twenty percent of suicides (20.4%; n = 358) were among youth aged 10 to 24 years; 35.8% (n = 629) and 33.3% (n = 586) of suicide deaths occurred among young adults (25–44 years) and middle-age adults (45–64 years); 10.6% (n = 186) of suicide deaths were among seniors (65 years or older)
Summary
The suicide rate in Canada decreased by 24% during the past four decades. This study examined suicide rates over time in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. In 2017, suicide was the second leading cause of injury deaths globally and ranked 14th among the leading causes of years of life lost [6]. Since 1990, suicide rates have decreased worldwide by 32%, rates and patterns over time differ between and within countries [7]. In Canada, the suicide rate declined by 24% between 1981 and 2017 [8]. In 2017, suicide rates were highest among adults aged 45 to 64 years [8] and suicide was the second leading cause of death among youth aged 10 to 19 years [10], though a relatively small percentage of all suicides (6.2%) occurred in this young age group [9]. Data from 2018, showed that suffocation-related suicide deaths (including hanging and strangulation) were the predominant means of suicide in Canada, accounting for 53.2% of all suicides, followed by poisoning (18%) and firearms (13.7%) [11]
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