IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v17y2020i19p7003-d418985.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Alcohol and the Risk of Railway Suicide

Author

Listed:
  • Dorota Lasota

    (Department of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology, Medical University of Warsaw, Banacha 1b Street, 02097 Warsaw, Poland)

  • Ahmed Al-Wathinani

    (Department of Emergency Medical Services, Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz College for Emergency Medical Services, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia)

  • Paweł Krajewski

    (Department of Forensic Medicine, Medical University of Warsaw, 50368 Warsaw, Poland)

  • Dagmara Mirowska-Guzel

    (Department of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology, Medical University of Warsaw, Banacha 1b Street, 02097 Warsaw, Poland)

  • Krzysztof Goniewicz

    (Department of Aviation Security, Military University of Aviation, 08521 Dęblin, Poland)

  • Attila J. Hertelendy

    (Department of Information Systems and Business Analytics, College of Business, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33174, USA)

  • Riyadh A. Alhazmi

    (Department of Emergency Medical Services, Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz College for Emergency Medical Services, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia)

  • Witold Pawłowski

    (Department of Emergency Medicine, Medical University of Lublin, 20081 Lublin, Poland)

  • Amir Khorram-Manesh

    (Institute of Clinical Sciences, Department of Surgery, Sahlgrenska Academy, Gothenburg University, 41345 Gothenburg, Sweden
    Department of Development and Research, Armed Forces Center for Defense Medicine, Västra Frölunda, 42676 Gothenburg, Sweden)

  • Mariusz Goniewicz

    (Department of Emergency Medicine, Medical University of Lublin, 20081 Lublin, Poland)

Abstract

Suicide is one of the ten most common causes of death in the world. Of all deaths from suicide, 22% can be attributed to the use of alcohol, which means that every fifth suicide would not occur if alcohol were not consumed by the population. People under the influence of alcohol choose more radical and effective methods of dying by suicide, e.g., throwing themselves under a moving vehicle, such as a train. The presented analysis aimed to determine important risk factors affecting railway suicide in Poland and their relation to the state of alcohol intoxication of the victims, and the relationship between ethyl alcohol consumption and the phenomenon of suicide. Documentation obtained from the Department of Forensic Medicine at the Medical University of Warsaw, in the form of death registers and forensic medical records concerning examination and autopsy, was analyzed. This made it possible to identify suicide victims from among pedestrian victims of railway accidents recorded during the period under study. The research was carried out using unidimensional and multidimensional statistical analyses with IBM SPSS Statistics, version 25. Sober suicide victims were statistically significantly older than victims under the influence of alcohol; alcohol concentration was correlated with the age of the victims—the older the victims were, the higher the alcohol concentration. A significantly higher number of deaths attributed to suicide by sober victims was observed in autumn compared to other seasons. Multidimensional analysis showed a statistically significant effect of age and season on the probability of dying by suicide under the influence of alcohol—this probability decreases with the age of the victims and is also significantly lower in autumn. The observed relationship between age and the presence of alcohol in suicide victims can be the cause of railway suicides. Knowledge of the mechanisms of seasonal variability of suicidal behavior can help to develop effective strategies to prevent railway suicides. It is necessary to improve the system of reporting railway suicides, as only reliable statistics provide the possibility of assessing both the scale of the problem and the effectiveness of actions taken.

Suggested Citation

  • Dorota Lasota & Ahmed Al-Wathinani & Paweł Krajewski & Dagmara Mirowska-Guzel & Krzysztof Goniewicz & Attila J. Hertelendy & Riyadh A. Alhazmi & Witold Pawłowski & Amir Khorram-Manesh & Mariusz Goniew, 2020. "Alcohol and the Risk of Railway Suicide," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(19), pages 1-10, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:19:p:7003-:d:418985
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/19/7003/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/19/7003/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Witold Pawłowski & Dorota Lasota & Mariusz Goniewicz & Patryk Rzońca & Krzysztof Goniewicz & Paweł Krajewski, 2019. "The Effect of Ethyl Alcohol upon Pedestrian Trauma Sustained in Traffic Crashes," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(8), pages 1-8, April.
    2. Silke Bachmann, 2018. "Epidemiology of Suicide and the Psychiatric Perspective," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-23, July.
    3. Dorota Lasota & Witold Pawłowski & Paweł Krajewski & Anna Staniszewska & Krzysztof Goniewicz & Mariusz Goniewicz, 2019. "Seasonality of Suicides among Victims Who Are under the Influence of Alcohol," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(15), pages 1-9, August.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Zizheng Guo & Zhenqi Chen & Jingyu Zhang & Qiaofeng Guo & Chuanning He & Yongliang Zhao, 2022. "Characteristics of Train–Pedestrian Collisions in Southwest China, 2011–2020," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(10), pages 1-19, May.
    2. Dorota Lasota & Dagmara Mirowska-Guzel & Krzysztof Goniewicz, 2021. "Analysis of Suicide Methods and Substances Influencing the State of Consciousness of Their Victims in Poland," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(9), pages 1-12, May.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Dorota Lasota & Dagmara Mirowska-Guzel & Krzysztof Goniewicz, 2021. "Analysis of Suicide Methods and Substances Influencing the State of Consciousness of Their Victims in Poland," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(9), pages 1-12, May.
    2. Ching Kwan & Clifford Wong & Zhansheng Chen & Paul S. F. Yip, 2022. "Youth Bullying and Suicide: Risk and Protective Factor Profiles for Bullies, Victims, Bully-Victims and the Uninvolved," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(5), pages 1-20, February.
    3. Marcos Vinicius de Carvalho Mendes & Solange Laurentino dos Santos & Claudia Cristina Lima de Castro & Betise Mery Alencar Sousa Macau Furtado & Heitor Victor Veiga da Costa & Albanita Gomes da Costa , 2021. "Analysis of Factors Associated with the Risk of Suicide in a Brazilian Capital: Cross-Sectional Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(1), pages 1-16, December.
    4. Ju-Hyeon Park & Young-Woo Seo & Seungbum Chae, 2023. "Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Adolescent Self-Harm: Based on a National Emergency Department Information System," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(5), pages 1-11, March.
    5. Supa Pengpid & Karl Peltzer, 2024. "Prevalence and correlates of psychological distress among national community-based adult populations in Nauru, Tukelau and Tuvalu," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 70(3), pages 437-444, May.
    6. Anna Staniszewska & Dorota Lasota & Aleksandra Kielan & Anna Brytek-Matera, 2022. "Suicide Attempts and Suicides as a Result of Poisoning and under the Influence of Xenobiotics in Poland in 1999–2020," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(4), pages 1-14, February.
    7. Bauer, Annette & Knapp, Martin & Alvi, Mohsin & Chaudhry, Nasim & Gregoire, Alain & Malik, Abid & Sikander, Siham & Tayyaba, Kiran & Wagas, Ahmed & Husain, Nusrat, 2024. "Economic costs of perinatal depression and anxiety in a lower-middle income country: Pakistan," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 122650, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    8. Ascensión Fumero & Rosario J. Marrero & Alicia Pérez-Albéniz & Eduardo Fonseca-Pedrero, 2021. "Adolescents’ Bipolar Experiences and Suicide Risk: Well-being and Mental Health Difficulties as Mediators," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(6), pages 1-16, March.
    9. Irene Pisnoli & Ruth Van der Hallen, 2022. "Attitudes toward Suicide and the Impact of Client Suicide: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(9), pages 1-10, April.
    10. Louise Brådvik, 2018. "Suicide Risk and Mental Disorders," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-4, September.
    11. Carl B. Roth & Andreas Papassotiropoulos & Annette B. Brühl & Undine E. Lang & Christian G. Huber, 2021. "Psychiatry in the Digital Age: A Blessing or a Curse?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(16), pages 1-32, August.
    12. Malosree Maitra & Haruka Mitsuhashi & Reza Rahimian & Anjali Chawla & Jennie Yang & Laura M. Fiori & Maria Antonietta Davoli & Kelly Perlman & Zahia Aouabed & Deborah C. Mash & Matthew Suderman & Nagu, 2023. "Cell type specific transcriptomic differences in depression show similar patterns between males and females but implicate distinct cell types and genes," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-18, December.
    13. Anaïs Le Jeannic & Kathleen Turmaine & Coralie Gandré & Marie-Amélie Vinet & Morgane Michel & Karine Chevreul & on behalf of the PRINTEMPS Consortium, 2023. "Defining the Characteristics of an e-Health Tool for Suicide Primary Prevention in the General Population: The StopBlues Case in France," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(12), pages 1-23, June.
    14. Tore Bonsaksen & Laila Skogstad & Trond Heir & Øivind Ekeberg & Inger Schou-Bredal & Tine K. Grimholt, 2021. "Suicide Thoughts and Attempts in the Norwegian General Population during the Early Stage of the COVID-19 Outbreak," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(8), pages 1-9, April.
    15. Kevin P. Conway & Patrick McGrain & Michelle Theodory, 2023. "Fell on Black Days: Analyzing the Song Lyrics of Chris Cornell for Insight into Depression and Suicide," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(16), pages 1-13, August.
    16. Reinhold Kilian & Annabel Müller-Stierlin & Felicitas Söhner & Petra Beschoner & Harald Gündel & Tobias Staiger & Maja Stiawa & Thomas Becker & Karel Frasch & Maria Panzirsch & Max Schmauß & Silvia Kr, 2020. "Masculinity norms and occupational role orientations in men treated for depression," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(5), pages 1-16, May.
    17. Silje L. Kaspersen & Jorid Kalseth & Kim Stene-Larsen & Anne Reneflot, 2022. "Use of Health Services and Support Resources by Immediate Family Members Bereaved by Suicide: A Scoping Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(16), pages 1-28, August.
    18. Katarzyna Szczurek & Natalia Furgał & Dawid Szczepanek & Rashid Zaman & Krzysztof Krysta & Marek Krzystanek, 2021. "“Medical Student Syndrome”—A Myth or a Real Disease Entity? Cross-Sectional Study of Medical Students of the Medical University of Silesia in Katowice, Poland," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(18), pages 1-16, September.
    19. Rosa Giannina Castillo-Avila & Alma Delia Genis-Mendoza & Isela Esther Juárez-Rojop & María Lilia López-Narváez & Diana María Dionisio-García & Germán Alberto Nolasco-Rosales & Miguel Ángel Ramos-Ménd, 2022. "High Serum Levels of IL-6 Are Associated with Suicide Attempt but Not with High Lethality Suicide Attempts: A Preliminary Case–Control Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(22), pages 1-12, November.
    20. Elias David Nino-Ruiz & Ana Maria Trejos-Herrera & Maria Yaquelin Exposito-Concepcion & Marjorie Rodriguez-Giraldo & Randy Steven Consuegra-Ortega & Claudia Guevara-Novoa, 2020. "A Simple Monte Carlo Framework to Assess Suicide Risk in Adolescents: A Study at a High School in Colombia," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(10), pages 1-12, May.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:19:p:7003-:d:418985. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.