Abstract
Abstract.Background: Overall gender ratios are often quoted in studies of deliberate self-harm (DSH) patients, almost always with higher rates in females than males. Reporting a ratio across all ages may conceal important variations in the gender ratio across the life cycle. Method: Analysis was done of the gender ratio by age groups in rates of DSH in a consecutive sample of DSH patients presenting to a general hospital over a 10-year period. The patients were identified through a well-established monitoring system. Results: The study sample included 2,189 female and 1,439 male patients. While the overall gender rate ratio was 1.5 females to each male, the ratio varied considerably by age group: 8:1 in 10-14-year-olds, 3.1:1 in 15-19-year-olds, 1.6:1 in 20-24-year-olds, approximately 1.3:1 in 25-49-year-olds, and 0.8:1 in people aged 50 years and over. Conclusion: Statements about overall gender ratios for DSH conceal important changes in the ratio across the life cycle. These changes probably reflect differences in development and problems faced in adolescence, changes in motivation for DSH with age, and the closer resemblance of DSH to suicide in older age groups.
References
(1974). Development of suicidal intent scales. In A. Beck, H. Resnik, & D.J. Lettieri (Eds.), Development of suicidal intent scales (pp. 45-56). Maryland: Charles Press
(2006). Adolescent suicide. Assessment and intervention (2nd ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association
(2006). Epidemiology of nonfatal deliberate self-harm in the United States as described in three medical databases. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 36, 192–212
(2005). Key data on adolescence 2005. Brighton: Trust for the Study of Adolescence
(2005). Suicide after deliberate self-harm: A 4-year cohort study. American Journal of Psychiatry, 162, 297–303
(1994). EpiInfo version 6: A word processing database and statistics program for epidemiology on microcomputers. Atlanta, Georgia: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(2005). The prevalence of suicidal phenomena in adolescents: A systematic review of population-based studies. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 35, 239–250
(2005). Value of measuring suicidal intent in the assessment of people attending hospital following self-poisoning or self-injury. British Journal of Psychiatry, 186, 60–66
(2000). Suicidal behavior among the elderly. In K. Hawton & K. Van Heeringen (Eds.), The international handbook of suicide and attempted suicide (pp. 275-291). Chichester: Wiley
(2000). Sex and suicide: Gender differences in suicidal behavior. British Journal of Psychiatry, 177, 484–485
(1982). Motivational aspects of deliberate self-poisoning in adolescents. British Journal of Psychiatry, 141, 286–291
(1982). Deliberate self-poisoning and self-injury in the Oxford area 1972-1980. Social Psychiatry, 17, 175–179
(1997). Trends in deliberate self-harm in Oxford, 1985-1995. Implications for clinical services and the prevention of suicide. British Journal of Psychiatry, 171, 556–560
(2003). Deliberate self-harm in adolescents: A study of characteristics and trends in Oxford, 1990-2000. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines, 44, 1191–1198
(2006). Deliberate self harm in people aged 60 years and over: Characteristics and outcome of a 20-year cohort. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 21, 572–581
(2007). Deliberate self-harm in young people: A study of characteristics and subsequent mortality in a 20-year cohort of patients presenting to hospital. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 68, 1574–1583
(in press). Deliberate self-harm by under 15-year olds: Characteristics, trends, and outcome. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry,
(2003). Deliberate self-harm in Oxford, 1990-2000: A time of change in patient characteristics. Psychological Medicine, 33, 987–996
(2002). Deliberate self-harm in adolescents: Self-report survey in schools in England. British Medical Journal, 325, 1207–1211
(2002). Why people engage in parasuicide: A cross-cultural study of intentions. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 32, 380–393
(2000). Comprehensive textbook of suicidology. New York: Guilford
(2005). A 20-year review of trends in deliberate self-harm in a British town, 1981-2000. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 40, 446–453
(1981). The meaning of attempted suicide to young parasuicides: A repertory grid study. British Journal of Psychiatry, 139, 306–312
(2007). Pubertal stage and deliberate self-harm in adolescents. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 46, 508–514
(1981). Suicidal behavior of children: A review with implications for research and practice. American Journal of Psychiatry, 138, 154–159
(1988). Recent clinical and epidemiological trends in parasuicide in Edinburgh and Oxford: A tale of two cities. Psychological Medicine, 18, 405–418
(2004). Reasons for deliberate self-harm: Comparison of self-poisoners and self-cutters in a community sample of adolescents. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 43, 80–87
(1996). Attempted suicide in Europe: Rates, trends, and sociodemographic characteristics of suicide attempters during the period 1989-1992. Results of the WHO/EURO Multicenter Study on Parasuicide. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 93, 327–338
(2004). Suicidal behavior in Europe: Results from the WHO/EURO multicenter study on suicidal behavior. Göttingen: Hogrefe & Huber
(1990). Reliability of routine hospital data on poisoning as measures of deliberate self-poisoning in adolescents. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 44, 313–315
(2006). Country reports and charts. Retrieved on October 24, 2007, from www.who.int/mental_health/prevention/suicide/country_reports/en/index.html
(2006). The ecological fallacy and the gender ratio of suicide in China. British Journal of Psychiatry, 189, 465–466
