Suicide gap among young adults in Scotland: population study

Abstract

The general register office for Scotland provided data on deaths from suicide and undetermined causes for 1980-2 and 1999-2001 (international classification of diseases, ninth revision (ICD-9), codes E950-E959 E980-E989; ICD-10 X60-X84, Y10-Y34, Y87.0). These were aggregated from the postcodes of those who died to about 10 000 small areas (CATTs) which are consistent through time.3 The suicide rate declined significantly among older adults aged 3 45 years, from 22.99 per 100 000 (95% confidence interval 21.69 to 24.29) in 1980-2 to 16.73 (15.73 to 17.73) in 1999-2001, but increased significantly from 15.38 (14.38 to 16.38) to 24.32 (23.12 to 25.52) among younger adults aged 15-44 years. The rate increased significantly from 22.13 (20.43 to 23.83) to 38.65 (36.45 to 40.85) for young men. The rate also increased in young women but this was not significant (from 8.62 (7.52 to 9.72) to 10.55 (9.45 to 11.65)).