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Aims: This ecological comparison study explored temporal trends since 1985 in age-adjusted suicide and homicide rates for older male adults (over the age of 65) resident in the EU and the Russian Federation. Methods: The data were extracted from the World Health Organization's (WHO) European mortality database. Results: Older men resident in the Russian Federation had a higher risk of dying a violent death (by homicide and by suicide) than their younger compatriots (relative risks (RR) ranging from 1.13 to 1.31). Conversely, in the EU, older men had a higher risk of dying from suicide (RRs of 1.52 for men over the age of 65 and 3.27 for men over the age of 75) and a lower risk of being victims of homicide (RRs ranging between 0.84 and 0.89) than their younger compatriots. Conclusions: The European region is characterized by great inequalities in rates of violent deaths among the elderly.

The purpose of the present study was to analyze sex and regional differences in the suicide rate of adolescents and the methods they used for suicide in Italy during the period 1970–2002. Temporal trends and regional variations in suicide for Italian adolescents were retrieved from the Italian database on mortality for the period 1970–2002, collected by the Italian Census Bureau and processed by the Italian National Institute of Health-Statistics Unit. In the period 1970–2002, 3,069 adolescent suicides were monitored in Italy. Analyses of these suicides identified significant differences by region of residence and sex. Males were 2.1 times more likely than females to kill themselves. Male and female suicides had inverse trends in the years analyzed, so that the sex difference at the present time is the result of a continuous increase in male suicides and a decrease in female suicides since 1970. The dramatic peaks observed over the time period studied cannot be attributed to a single cause, indicating that further studies are needed to better understand the phenomenon.

Aims: To explore temporal trends since 1980 in alcohol-related death for people resident in the European Union (EU) and to examine differences between EU members admitted prior to 2004 and new EU members admitted since 2004. Methods: The data were extracted from the World Health Organization's European mortality database and the European Health for All database. Results: New EU members had higher rates of alcohol-related deaths (135.0 ± 18.48 vs 88.9 ± 18.93; t = −8.55 (d.f. = 46), p < .001) and higher death rates from alcohol abuse (whole population: 3.4 ± 1.24 vs 2.6 ± 0.12; t = −2.98 (d.f. = 23.45), p < .01; male population: 6.1 ± 2.17 vs 4.4 ± 0.19; t = −3.87 (d.f. = 23.35), p < .001) than early EU countries. However, a mortality gradient between groups of countries was visible only for female alcohol-related deaths when controlling for mortality rates from all causes. Multivariate regression analyses also indicated that alcohol-related deaths and alcohol consumption were associated negatively with the gross national product (GNP) of EU countries and positively with levels of urbanization. Conclusions: Alcohol-related deaths represent more than 10% of all EU mortality and confirm the importance of national prevention strategies for alcohol problems.

Italy has the third-largest immigrant population of European Union countries, but only a few research papers have examined suicide risk in immigrant psychiatric patients in Italy. The main aim of this paper was to compare suicidal ideation and suicide attempts in a sample of 304 psychiatric patients. We included 152 immigrant patients matched with 152 Italian patients admitted to the same wards during the same time period by age, gender, and diagnosis. We also investigated sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of the two samples including psychiatric diagnosis, age of illness onset, duration of illness, previous hospitalizations, length of hospitalization, previous suicide attempts, and substance and alcohol abuse. There were no differences between immigrant and Italian patients in either suicidal ideation (previous or current) or suicide attempts (previous or current). Immigrant patients were more likely to have a shorter duration of illness than the Italian patients and Italian patients were more likely to report substance abuse than were immigrant patients. Despite similar suicide rates between immigrants and Italian psychiatric inpatients, appropriate assessment of suicide risk in these patients is essential in implementing therapeutic suicide prevention strategies.

Aims: The aim of the present study was to investigate potential differences between suicide decedents who had contact with a psychologist or psychiatrist before committing suicide and those individuals who had not had previous contact with a mental health professional prior to ending their lives. Methods: Psychological autopsy interviews ( N = 396) were conducted for individuals who died by suicide between 1997 and 2007 in South Tirol, Italy. Results: The study found that suicide decedents known to mental health professionals were more frequently women and more frequently unemployed or with unstable employment. These decedents were significantly more likely than those unknown to mental health professionals to have a family history of mental illness, one or more past suicide attempts, and more frequent substance abuse, and likely to have frequent alcohol abuse. They more often had visited a physician in the last four weeks before dying and more frequently complained about psychological symptoms. In the prediction of group membership, individuals whom were known to mental health professionals prior to their suicidal act were 3 times more likely to have a family history of mental illness, 5.8 times more likely to have one past suicide attempt, 9.7 times more likely to have two or more past suicide attempts and 3.5 times more likely to have visited a physician in the four weeks prior to their death. Conclusion: Our findings indicate that suicide decedents who had contact with mental health services can be distinguished from those who were not known to mental health professionals.

Background: Suicide is a major cause of premature death in Italy and occurs at different rates in the various regions. Aims: The aim of the present study was to provide a comprehensive overview of suicide in the Italian population aged 15 years and older for the years 1980–2006. Methods: Mortality data were extracted from the Italian Mortality Database. Results: Mortality rates for suicide in Italy reached a peak in 1985 and declined thereafter. The different patterns observed by age and sex indicated that the decrease in the suicide rate in Italy was initially the result of declining rates in those aged 45+ while, from 1997 on, the decrease was attributable principally to a reduction in suicide rates among the younger age groups. It was found that socioeconomic factors underlined major differences in the suicide rate across regions. Conclusions: The present study confirmed that suicide is a multifaceted phenomenon that may be determined by an array of factors. Suicide prevention should, therefore, be targeted to identifiable high-risk sociocultural groups in each country.