CDC: 1999 to 2018 saw 35 percent increase in suicide rates

(HealthDay)—Suicide rates increased 35 percent from 1999 through 2018, according to an April data brief published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Center for Health Statistics.

Holly Hedegaard, M.D., from the National Center for Health Statistics in Hyattsville, Maryland, and colleagues used data from the National Vital Statistics System to update trends in suicide rates from 1999 through 2018.

The researchers noted a 35 percent increase in the suicide rate from 1999 through 2018, from 10.5 to 14.2 per 100,000. On average, the rate increased 1 and 2 percent per year from 1999 to 2006 and from 2006 through 2018, respectively. The suicide rate for males was 3.7 times that for females in 2018 (22.8 versus 6.2, respectively). Suicide rates among females were highest for those aged 45 to 64 years from 1999 through 2018, while for males, the rates were highest for those aged 75 years and older. For both males and females, suicide rates in 2018 were higher in the most rural counties versus the most urban counties.

"After years of increase, the suicide rates for several demographic groups have stabilized in recent years," the authors write. "These include females aged 45 to 64, 65 to 74, and 75 and over, and males aged 45 to 64."

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