4.6 Article

Altitude, Gun Ownership, Rural Areas, and Suicide

Journal

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRY
Volume 168, Issue 1, Pages 49-54

Publisher

AMER PSYCHIATRIC PUBLISHING, INC
DOI: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2010.10020289

Keywords

-

Categories

Funding

  1. Novartis
  2. Eli Lilly
  3. Kyowa Hakko
  4. GlaxoSmithKline
  5. Roche
  6. VISN 19 MIRECC
  7. Utah Science, Technology, and Research Initiative (USTAR)
  8. NIMH [MH58681]
  9. NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH [R01MH058681] Funding Source: NIH RePORTER
  10. NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON DRUG ABUSE [K05DA031247] Funding Source: NIH RePORTER

Ask authors/readers for more resources

Objective: The authors recently observed a correlation between state altitude and suicide rate in the United States, which could be explained by higher rates of gun ownership and lower population density in the intermountain West. The present study evaluated the relationship between mean county and state altitude in the United States and total age-adjusted suicide rates, firearm-related suicide rates, and non-firearm-related suicide rates. The authors hypothesized that altitude would be significantly associated with suicide rate. Method: Elevation data were calculated with an approximate spatial resolution of 0.5 km, using zonal statistics on data sets compiled from the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Suicide and population density data were obtained through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) WONDER database. Gun ownership data were obtained through the CDC's Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. Results: A significant positive correlation was observed between age-adjusted suicide rate and county elevation (r=0.51). Firearm (r=0.41) and non-firearm suicide rates (r=0.32) were also positively correlated with mean county elevation. Conclusions: When altitude, gun ownership, and population density are considered as predictor variables for suicide rates on a state basis, altitude appears to be a significant independent risk factor. This association may be related to the effects of metabolic stress associated with mild hypoxia in individuals with mood disorders.

Authors

I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.

Reviews

Primary Rating

4.6
Not enough ratings

Secondary Ratings

Novelty
-
Significance
-
Scientific rigor
-
Rate this paper

Recommended

No Data Available
No Data Available