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Suicide in young children more common in males, blacks, those with ADD, ADHD
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Recent findings on suicide in elementary school-aged children suggest a need for common and developmentally-specific suicide prevention strategies for this age group.
“Suicide in elementary school-aged children is rare. The most recent national mortality statistics from the CDC reveal a suicide rate of 0.17 per 100,000 persons in youth between the ages of 5 and 11 years, in contrast to a rate of 5.18 per 100,000 among adolescents aged 12 to 17 years. Nevertheless, suicide ranked 10th as a cause of death for U.S. elementary school-aged children in 2014,” Arielle H. Sheftall, PhD, of the Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, and colleagues wrote.
To characterize suicide in elementary school-aged children and potential racial differences, researchers analyzed National Violent Death Reporting System surveillance data for suicide deaths from 2003 to 2012 for 17 U.S. states. Analysis included all suicide decedents aged 5 to 14 years (n = 693).
Children aged 5 to 11 years who died by suicide were more likely to be male, black, die by hanging/strangulation/suffocation, and die at home, compared with adolescents aged 12 to 14 years who died by suicide.
Relationship problems with family members/friends were more common among children who died by suicide, compared with adolescents (60.3% vs. 46%; P = .02).
Boyfriend/girlfriend problems (0% vs. 16%; P < .001) and leaving a suicide note (7.7% vs. 30.2%; P < .001) were less common among children who died by suicide, compared with adolescents.
Among suicide decedents with known mental health disorders (n = 210), attention-deficit disorder with or without hyperactivity was more common among children (59.3% vs. 29%; P = .002), while depression/dysthymia was less common (33.3% vs. 65.6%; P = .001), compared with adolescents.
“The finding that circumstances precipitating suicide appear to be similar for black and non-black elementary school-aged children suggests that universal suicide prevention and treatment strategies may be appropriate. However, more research is needed to establish whether unique patterns of suicide risk exist to suggest that prevention efforts might incorporate diverse strategies informed by developmental level, race, or ethnicity,” the researchers concluded. – by Amanda Oldt
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.