|
|
||||||||
RESEARCH AND PRACTICE |
At the time of the study, Karon Abe, Kristen Mertz, and Kenneth Powell were with the Division of Public Health, Georgia Department of Human Resources, Atlanta. Randy Hanzlick is with the Fulton County Medical Examiners Office, Atlanta.
Correspondence: Requests for reprints should be sent to Karon Abe, PhD, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 4770 Buford Hwy Mail Stop K-23, Atlanta, GA 30341 (e-mail kabe{at}cdc.gov).
| ABSTRACT |
|---|
|
|
|---|
Objectives. We compared the prevalence of risk factors for Black and White suicide decedents in Fulton County, Georgia, from 19882002.
Methods. We used data from the Fulton County Medical Examiners Office to compile information on suicides that occurred in Fulton County between 1988 and 2002. We used the
2 test and logistic regression to identify associations between suicide risk factors and race.
Results. Black suicide decedents were more likely than White suicide decedents to be male (odds ratio [OR]=2.06; 95% confidence interval [CI]=1.38, 3.09), to be younger, (
24 y [OR = 4.74; 95% CI = 2.88, 7.81]; 2534 y [OR = 2.79; 95% CI = 1.74, 4.47]; 3544 y [OR = 1.86; 95% CI = 1.13, 3.07]), and to hurt others in a suicide (OR = 4.22; 95% CI = 1.60, 11.15) but less likely to report depression (OR=0.63; 95% CI=0.48, 0.83), to have a family history of suicide (OR=0.08; 95% CI=0.01, 0.61), or to leave a suicide note (OR=0.37; 95% CI=0.26, 0.52).
Conclusions. Future research should consider that Black suicide decedents are less likely to report depression than White suicide decedents. This suicide risk difference is important when developing effective suicide prevention programs.
| INTRODUCTION |
|---|
|
|
|---|
The recent rise in suicide rates among young Blacks has prompted researchers to reevaluate whether risk factors among White suicide decedents are relevant predictors of suicides among Blacks. Studies have identified several suicide risk factors among Blacks. These factors include male gender,1,68,11 young age,1,69 mental health service use,13 substance abuse,14,15 firearm availability,8,14,16 geographic residence (i.e., Northeast),9,11,14 higher economic status,17 and threatening behavior toward others.14,18 These risk factors also apply to Whites, with the exception of young age, geographic residence, and higher economic status.1,6,7,13 For Blacks, however, these findings are from a limited number of studies that are often hindered by small sample sizes.1,6,7,14
The substantial proportion of Blacks in the Fulton County, Georgia, population provides an opportunity to study differences between Black and White suicide decedents. In 2000, a total of 12% of the US population was Black and 75% was White. In Fulton County, Georgia, 45% of the population was Black and 48% of the population was White.19 The Fulton County Medical Examiners Office (FCMEO) collects demographic information on all persons who commit suicide in Fulton County, as well as information on the circumstances surrounding the suicides. Our examination of the FCMEO database to identify characteristics of suicide associated with race between 1988 and 2002 makes this study one of the largest population-based studies of Black and White suicide decedents.
| METHODS |
|---|
|
|
|---|
Analysis
For analyses, we identified suicide decedents from the standardized forms that were marked as suicide under "manner of death." We classified deaths as firearm suicides if a firearm was noted in the field "describe how injury occurred." We collapsed the codes for ethanol abuse and drug abuse into 1 category for substance abuse and all other medical conditions into 1 category for chronic disease.
We used
2 tests to evaluate the associations between the characteristics of suicide and race. Crude odds ratios (OR) were calculated by using SAS version 9.1 (SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC). Variables associated with race in the univariate analysis were put into a logistic regression model to determine independent associations between the characteristics of suicide decedents and decedents race. The statistical significance of interaction terms for age, gender, depression and suicide note was determined through use of the "chunk" test.22
We calculated age-specific suicide rates per 100000 population among Blacks and Whites in Fulton County by using the 1990 US Census population (bridged) as the denominator for suicides that occurred between 1988 and 1992, the 1995 US Census estimates (bridged) as the denominator for suicides that occurred during between 1993 and 1997, and the 2000 US Census population as the denominator for suicides that occurred between 1998 and 2002. We age adjusted suicide rates by using the 2000 US standard population.
| RESULTS |
|---|
|
|
|---|
44 years (Table 1
44 years. Firearms accounted for 60% of the suicides and were the principal method of suicide among both Black (62%) and White (59%) decedents.
|
|
|
|
Multivariate analysis indicated that Black suicide decedents were more likely than White suicide decedents to be male, to be young, and to hurt others in a suicide; however, they were less likely to be reported to have a history of depression, a family history of suicide, or to leave a suicide note (Table 3
). Interaction terms were not significantly associated with race.
|
| DISCUSSION |
|---|
|
|
|---|
These findings are important, because current risk factors for suicide have been identified mainly from studies involving predominantly White suicide decedents.1,4 Studies of suicides among Blacks lack generalizability since many of the studies have been restricted by limited sample populations.6,14,25 Other studies of suicides among Blacks have focused on populations of suicide attempters rather than suicide completers.26 Only a few studies have reported suicide risk factors among Black and White suicide decedents by using a nationally representative study population.13,14,18 One of the strengths of our study is that we had a greater proportion of Black suicide decedents than other similar studies. Furthermore, Garlow15 demonstrated that suicide decedents in Fulton County, Georgia, (19941999) were similar to the national sample of suicide decedents in the 1986 and 1993 National Mortality Follow-back Survey (NMFS).13,18,24
Several studies suggest that, because of culture or spiritual beliefs, stronger negative perceptions exist toward suicide or suicide risk factors among Blacks compared with Whites, which can potentially lead to underreporting of both suicide and suicide risk factors.6,27,28 Misclassification of suicides has been reported to occur more frequently among minorities.29 Studies also have suggested that Blacks, in particular, regard suicide as a dishonorable act and therefore might misreport a suicide as another type of injury-related death (e.g., homicide, unintentional death) to avoid the stigma of suicide.28,30,31 The FCMEO follows a standard procedure for determining suicide as the cause of death that should minimize racial bias.
The lower odds ratios we observed for depression among Black suicide decedents might be strongly influenced by negative cultural perceptions toward depression that exist within the Black community.32 These negative perceptions toward depression might directly influence access to or utilization of medical or psychiatric care, family support, awareness of depression by family or decedent, or a combination of these.6,13,31 Although depression and other mental illnesses have been less well studied among Blacks than among Whites,1,33,34 the available evidence supports that Blacks, in general, have a lower lifetime estimated prevalence of major depression after confounders are controlled.3335 Whether Blacks are truly less depressed compared with Whites or whether the lower prevalence is a result of the underreporting caused by cultural stigmas associated with depression remains a significant question to be studied.
Our analysis had certain limitations. The information on characteristics of suicide was collected from family members or friends and was not verified by medical records or diagnostic testing. Although all FCMEO investigators undergo training on how to complete a case form, the method by which the suicide information is collected is at the discretion of the FCMEO investigator. Underreporting characteristics of the suicide might occur if the investigator does not ask or if a family member or friend does not mention a specific characteristic of the suicide. Finally, our suicide rates are not "true" rates because the numerator represents the number of suicides that occurred in Fulton County and the denominator represents residents of Fulton County. Data available from 1998 through 2002 indicate that suicide rates calculated from the FCMEO database were lower than those calculated by using number of suicides by Fulton County residents (6.2 per 100000 compared with 6.4 per 100000 for Blacks and 14 per 100000 compared with 16.9 per 100000 for Whites, respectively). This discrepancy suggests White residents of Fulton County might be more likely to commit suicide in another county.
Our study examined a unique set of suicide characteristics among Fulton County suicide decedents by race, using the large Black population in Fulton County. Identification of Black individuals at high risk for suicide would appear to be more difficult than identification of White individuals because the most common contributing factor, depression, was significantly more commonly reported among White suicide decedents. Therefore, prevention efforts may need to place relatively greater emphasis on communitywide activities to establish supportive environments and build coping skills. Both Blacks and Whites also may benefit from safer firearm storage practices in households that choose to have a firearm, because use of firearms was the principal method in more than 50% of suicides by Blacks and Whites. Future years will determine whether the suicide rates and the predominant risk factors for Black and White youth have converged.36 Will the suicide rates among this cohort of Black youth follow the upward trend of White suicide rates or will the suicide rates decrease as observed among older Blacks as these youth age? Will the reporting of predominant risk factors for suicide (e.g., depression) also increase among Blacks over time if a continued upward suicide trend occurs similar to that of Whites? Further research is necessary to identify whether the converging of the suicide rates results in the convergence of suicide risk factors among Blacks and Whites. Such studies should provide useful information when developing the appropriate suicide prevention programs targeted to both Blacks and Whites.
| Acknowledgments |
|---|
Human Participant Protection
No protocol approval was needed for this study.
| Footnotes |
|---|
Contributors
K. Abe, K. Mertz, and K. Powell conceived and designed the study. K. Abe performed the data analysis and led the writing of this article. K. Mertz and K. Powell conceptualized ideas, participated in the writing, and supervised data analysis. R. Hanzlick compiled the data, maintained the database, outlined the methodology, and was available for consultation. All the authors helped formulate ideas, interpret findings, and reviewed drafts of the article.
Accepted for publication May 8, 2006.
| References |
|---|
|
|
|---|
2. Arias E, Anderson RN, Kung HC, Murphy SL, Kochanek KD. Deaths: final data for 2001. Natl Vital Stat Rep. 2003;52:1115.[Medline]
3. Kochanek KD, Murphy SL, Anderson RN, Scott C. Deaths: final data for 2002. Natl Vital Stat Rep. 2004; 53:1115.[Medline]
4. Moscicki EK. Epidemiology of suicidal behavior. Suicide Life Threat Behav. 1995;25:2235.[Web of Science][Medline]
5. United States Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, Office of Analysis, Epidemiology, and Health Promotion, Compressed Mortality File [CDC-Wonder on-line database]. Available at: http://wonder.cdc.gov. Accessed May 11, 2005.
6. Gibbs JT. African-American suicide: a cultural paradox. Suicide Life Threat Behav. 1997;27:6879.[Web of Science][Medline]
7. Joe S, Kaplan MS. Suicide among African-American men. Suicide Life Threat Behav. 2001;31(Suppl): 106121.[CrossRef][Web of Science][Medline]
8. Willis LA, Coombs DW, Cockerham WC, Frison SL, Garlow SJ. Ready to die: a postmodern interpretation of the increase of African-American adolescent male suicide. Soc Sci Med. 2002;55:907920.[CrossRef][Web of Science][Medline]
9. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Suicide among Black youthsUnited States, 19801995. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 1998;47:193196.[Medline]
10. United States Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. [WISQARS online database]. Available at: http://webappa.cdc.gov/sasweb/ncipc/mortrate.html. Accessed January 10, 2005.
11. Davis R. Black suicide in the seventies: current trends. Suicide Life Threat Behav. 1979;9:131140.[Web of Science][Medline]
12. US Bureau of the Census, 2003. Table 4: Annual Estimates of the Population by Sex and Age of Black or African-American Alone for the United States: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2003 (NC-EST200304-03) Release date: June 14, 2004. Available at: http://www.census.gov. Accessed October 14, 2005.
13. Kung KC, Liu X, Juon HS. Risk factors for suicide in Caucasians and in African Americans: a matched case-control study. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol. 1998;33:155161.[CrossRef][Web of Science][Medline]
14. Willis LA, Coombs DW, Drentea P, Cockerham WC. Uncovering the mystery: factors of African-American suicide. Suicide Life Threat Behav. 2003;33:412429.[CrossRef][Web of Science][Medline]
15. Garlow SJ. Age, gender, and ethnicity differences in patterns of cocaine and ethanol use preceding suicide. Am J Psychiatry. 2002;159:615619.
16. Kaplan MS, Geling O. Firearm suicides and homicides in the United States: regional variations and patterns of gun ownership. Soc Sci Med. 1998;46: 12271233.[CrossRef][Web of Science][Medline]
17. Burr JH, JT Matteson DW. Black suicide in US metropolitan areas: an examination of the racial inequality and social integration regulation hypotheses. Social Forces. 1999;77:10491081.[CrossRef][Web of Science]
18. Castle K, Duberstein PR, Meldrum S, Conner KR, Conwell Y. Risk factors for suicide in Blacks and Whites: an analysis of data from the 1993 National Mortality Followback Survey. Am J Psychiatry. 2004; 161:452458.
19. US Census Bureau, 2000 Census; ePodunk. Available at: http://www.epodunk.com/cgi-bin/popInfo/php?locIndex=7956 Accessed January 10, 2005.
20. Rosenberg ML, Davidson LE, Smith JC, et al. Operational criteria for the determination of suicide. J Forensic Sci. 1988;33:144556.[Web of Science][Medline]
21. Hanzlick R, Hunsaker JC, Davis GJ. Guide for Manner of Death Classification. National Association of Medical Examiners. Available at: http://www.charlydmiller.com/LIB03/2002NAMEmannerofdeath.pdf. Accessed July 10, 2006.
22. Kleinbaum D. Logistic regression: a self-learning text. Springer-Verlag TELOS, New York, NY: 1994.
23. Bingham CR, Bennion LD, Openshaw DK, Adams GR. An analysis of age, gender and racial differences in recent national trends of youth suicide. Adolesc. 1994;17:5371.[Medline]
24. Kung HC, Pearson JL, Wei R. Substance use, firearm availability, depressive symptoms, and mental health service utilization among White and African American suicide decedents aged 15 to 64 years. Ann Epidemiol. 2005;15:614621.[CrossRef][Web of Science][Medline]
25. Joe S, Marcus SC. Datapoints: trends by race and gender in suicide attempts among US adolescents, 19912001. Psychiatr Serv. 2003;54:454.
26. Roy A. African-American and Caucasian attempters compared for suicide risk factors: a preliminary study. Suicide Life Threat Behav. 2003;33: 443447.[CrossRef][Web of Science][Medline]
27. Early K. Religion and Suicide in the African-American Community. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Press; 1992.
28. Gibbs JT. Conceptual, methodological, and socio-cultural issues in Black youth suicide: implications for assessment and early intervention. Suicide Life Threat Behav. 1988;18:7389.[Web of Science][Medline]
29. Sorenson SB, Shen H. Youth suicide trends in California: an examination of immigrant and ethnic group risk. Suicide Life Threat Behav. 1996;26:143154.[Web of Science][Medline]
30. Peck D. Official documentation of the Black suicide experience. Omega. 1983;14:2131.
31. Wyche K, Rotheram-Borus M. Suicide Behavior Among Minority Youth in the United States. Newbury Park, Calif: Sage; 1990.
32. National Mental Health Association. Depression and African-Americans Fact Sheet. Alexandria, Va: National Mental Health Association; 2000.
33. Kessler RC, McGonagle KA, Zhao S. Lifetime and 12-month prevalence of DSM-III-R psychiatric disorders in the United States: results from the National Comorbidity Survey. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1994;51:819.
34. Dunlop DD, Song J, Lyons JS, Manheim LM, Chang RW. Racial/ethnic differences in rates of depression among preretirement adults. Am J Public Health. 2003;93:19451952.
35. Blazer DG, Kessler RC, McGonagle KA, Swartz MS. The prevalence and distribution of major depression in a national community sample: the National Comorbidity Survey. Am J Psychiatry. 1994;151:979986.
36. Prudhomme C. The problem of suicide in the American Negro. Psychoanal Rev. 1938;25:187204, 372391.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |