Suicide mortality among older adults in Brazil between 2000 and 2019 – estimates from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019

Data de publicação

2022

Periódico

Revista da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical

Resumo

Introduction – Older adults present a higher risk of suicide, and Brazil is experiencing a fast population aging. To understand the impact of demographic transition, we compared Brazilian suicide mortality rates (MR) among adults (50+ years) with global rates, those from one high-income country, and those from one middle-income country. Looking for regional disparities, the MR was analyzed among older adults (60+ years) by Brazilian states.

Methods – This was an ecological study based on estimates from the Global Burden of Disease Study, from 2000 to 2019. Age-standardized MR and age-specific MR per 100,000 inhabitants were described, with 95% uncertainty intervals (UI).

Results – During the period, the annual estimates and the declining trend in mortality were higher in the world than in the studied countries. In 2019, global age-standardized MR was 9.39 (95% UI 8.48-10.29), compared to 5.68 (95% UI 5.40-6.19), 6.01 (95% UI 5.10-7.04), and 6.63 (95% UI 6.43-6.95) in Brazil, Mexico, and England, respectively. In Brazil, despite a significant decline in national rates, stability was observed in 15 states. An increase in aging was only found for men, who presented 3-4 times higher MR than women. The states’ rates presented large differences: in 2019, the rates among men aged 60-64 years varied from 7.24 (95% UI 5.31; 9.85) to 26.32 (95% UI 20.21; 34.50).

Conclusions – The smaller decline in suicide mortality among older Brazilian adults, the increasing risk with aging, and the higher mortality among men indicate the need for specific prevention policies. The variation within states suggests differences in the data quality or in socio-cultural and historical aspects, which requires further investigation.

DOI/link

https://doi.org/10.1590/0037-8682-0322-2021

Autoria

Vínculo institucional

Lattes

Orcid

Ademar Moreira Pires

Faculdade de Ciências Médicas de Minas Gerais, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências da Saúde, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brasil.

Júlia Gondim Maia Reis

Faculdade Ciências Médicas de Minas Gerais, Faculdade de Medicina, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brasil.

Flávia Megda Garcia

Faculdade Ciências Médicas de Minas Gerais, Faculdade de Medicina, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brasil.

Guilherme Augusto Veloso

Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Instituto de Ciências Exatas, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Estatística, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brasil.

Ana Paula Souto Melo

Universidade Federal de São João del-Rei, Faculdade de Medicina, Divinópolis, MG, Brasil.

Mohsen Naghavi

Washington University, Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation, Seattle, USA.

Valéria Maria de Azeredo Passos

Faculdade de Ciências Médicas de Minas Gerais, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências da Saúde, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brasil.