 | The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
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| The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
Sean Joe, MSW, PhD, School of Social Work, University of Pennsylvania, 3701 Locust Walk, Philadelphia, PA 19104, 215-573-7133, sjoe@ssw.upenn.edu, Mark S. Kaplan, DrPH, School of Community Health, Portland State University, P.O. Box 751, Portland, OR 97207, and Sophia Hussen, MPH, School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, 295 John Morgan Building, 3620 Hamilton Walk, Philadelphia, PA 19104.
National trends in firearm-related suicides among African-American and white males in the age groups 15 to 19 years and 20 to 24 years from 1979 to 1999 were examined. To examine the magnitude and statistical significance of changes in firearm-related suicide rates, linear and quadratic analyses were performed separately for each rate to estimate change expressed as an increase or decrease in the rate per 100,000 population. An analysis of covariance was used to compare ethnic difference in trends in firearm-related suicide rates and Chi square test for trends to determine whether the percentage of suicides due to firearms increased or decreased linearly. The rates and percentages of suicides by firearms increased significantly more among African-American males than among white males. During the 19-year period, firearms accounted for about 70 percent and 64 percent of all suicides among males aged 15 to 19 years and 20 to 24 years, respectively. The results support the United States Surgeon General’s call for greater awareness of the suicide risk among African-American males. Beyond the clinical implications of these results, future research is needed to provide a better understanding of the impact of social exclusion, economic deprivation, and substance abuse on self-destructive behaviors among young African-American males.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Suicide, Adolescent Health
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.