Suicide prevention - a medical breakthrough?
by
Isacsson G
Karolinska Institute,
NEUROTEC,
Division of Psychiatry,
Huddinge Hospital,
Sweden.
Acta Psychiatr Scand 2000 Aug; 102(2):113-7

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: The author hypothesized, based on research until 1991, that a five-fold increase in the use of antidepressants might reduce Swedish suicide rates by 25%. A subsequent 3.5-fold increase in the use of antidepressants provided a 'natural experimental situation' for prospectively testing this hypothesis. METHOD: Swedish statistics on suicide, use of antidepressants, unemployment and alcohol consumption were obtained for 1978-96. Time-series of the latter variables were compared with suicide rates. Demographic subgroups regarding age, gender and county were analysed. Suicide rates were also compared with the use of antidepressants in Denmark, Norway and Finland. RESULTS: Suicide rates decreased in accordance with the a priori hypothesis. Alcohol consumption and unemployment rates did not correlate well with suicide rates. CONCLUSION: This naturalistic study is not conclusive. The increased use of antidepressants appears, however, to be one of the contributing factors to the decrease in the suicide rate. It is of great scientific and clinical importance that this be evaluated by further studies.

CRF
LHPA
5-HT1a
5-HT2a
Serotonin
Anhedonia
Anticonvulsants
Rational suicide?
Essential fatty acids
Evolution and emotion
The evolution of suicide
Shakespearean suicides
Alcohol, suicide and serotonin
Speech, depression and suicide
Serotonergic genes and suicide
How stress triggers depression
Suicide, serotonin and dopamine
Suicide rates in the antidepressant era

Refs
and further reading

HOME
HedWeb
Nootropics
cocaine.wiki
Future Opioids
BLTC Research
MDMA/Ecstasy
Superhapiness?
Utopian Surgery?
The Abolitionist Project
The Hedonistic Imperative
The Reproductive Revolution
Critique of Huxley's Brave New World

The Good Drug Guide
The Responsible Parent's Guide
To Healthy Mood Boosters For All The Family