Publication: Suicidal behavior and its relationship with postmortem forensic toxicological findings
Authors
Collados Ros, Aurelia ; Torres Sánchez, Carmen ; Pérez Cárceles, María Dolores ; Luna, Aurelia ; Legaz Pérez, Isabel
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Publisher
MDPI
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DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics10060319
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info:eu-repo/semantics/article
Description
© 2022 by the authors. This manuscript version is made available under the CC-BY 4.0 license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. This document is the Published version of a Published Work that appeared in final form in Toxics. To access the final edited and published work see https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics10060319
Abstract
Suicide affects all sociodemographic levels, age groups, and populations worldwide. The factors that can increase the risk of suicidal tendencies are widely studied. The aim of this study was to analyze the types and combinations of toxics found in fatal suicide victims with different suicide mechanisms. A total of 355 autopsies were retrospectively studied, and 26 toxics were determined and related to mechanisms of suicide. Hanging (55%), drug overdose (22.7%), and jumping from a height (17.8%) were most represented suicide mechanisms with positive toxicology. Hanging was the most represented in men (50.3%; p = 0.019), while jumping from a height was more represented in women (29.7%, p = 0.028). Drugs of abuse were the most frequent toxics found in men (55.5%; p < 0.001), while medicines were the most frequent type found in women (70.3%, p < 0.001). Alcohol, nordiazepam, cocaine, and venlafaxine were the most consumed toxics. Benzodiazepines and venlafaxine were found in suicides involving drug overdose, hanging, and jumping from a height. In conclusion, most suicides were associated with drug abuse in men. Hanging was more represented in men and jumping from a height in women. Alcohol was present in combination with other toxics and medicines. The toxicological analysis is fundamental to understanding consumption patterns and establishing strategies and protocols for detecting and preventing suicide.
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Citation
Toxics 2022, 10(6), 319
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