The effect of meteorological variables on suicide

Area of Science:

• Environmental Epidemiology
• Public Health
• Meteorology

Background:

• Seasonal patterns and holidays can influence suicide rates.
• Understanding environmental factors impacting suicide is crucial for public health interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between meteorological variables and suicide rates.
• To analyze completed suicides and suicide attempts independently of seasonal and holiday effects.

Main Methods:

• Observational retrospective study design.
• Collected suicide case data (age, gender, method) from January 2017 to June 2019.
• Gathered daily meteorological data (temperature, humidity, pressure) in Ankara.

Main Results:

• A 1°C increase in minimum temperature was associated with a 0.01 point increase in suicide occurrences.
• This association remained significant after controlling for day of the week and seasonality (p=0.046).
• No other meteorological variables showed a significant impact on suicide rates.

Conclusions:

• Minimum temperature is a significant meteorological factor associated with suicide rates.
• Findings contribute to the epidemiological understanding of suicide.
• Further large-scale studies with individual data are needed to establish causality.