Suicide in the Province of Foggia: Retrospective Study and Analysis of the Difference between Men and Women

Abstract

Background: Suicide is a significant cause of mortality affecting each age, gender, and country. In 2018, the Italian National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT) estimated that 3820 people committed suicide, with the highest incidence in males between 35 and 64 years old. The present study aims to report and analyze the data relating to suicides collected by the Institute of Forensic Medicine of Foggia compared to the data presented in the literature. Methods: The present study represents a retrospective analysis of crime scene investigations and autopsies records relating to all suicides from January 2015 to December 2021 referred to the archives of the Institute of Forensic Medicine of Foggia. The analyzed features were: the sex of the victim, method of suicide, age, the season of death, and presence of psychiatric or addiction history. Results: We selected 226 cases of suicide during the period from January 2015 to December 2021, from a total of 1184 deceases. 78% of the victims are men of average age; the most common methods of suicide are hanging and precipitation. Conclusions: The results of this study highlight the importance of personalized and gender-specific interventions and can inform policy-makers in the development of provincial suicide prevention plans and public health interventions. Studying suicidality in a well-defined population can help implement targeted interventions.