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. 2015 Jul;45(3):249-262.
doi: 10.1177/0022042615580988. Epub 2015 Apr 29.

Postmortem Presence of Drugs and Method of Violent Suicide

Connor M Sheehan  1 , Richard G Rogers  2 , Jason D Boardman  2
Affiliations

Postmortem Presence of Drugs and Method of Violent Suicide

Connor M Sheehan et al. J Drug Issues. 2015 Jul.

Abstract

The link between substance use and suicide is well established. However, little research analyzes how substance use is related to the method of suicide. This paper analyzes how specific drugs are associated with method of suicide, a critical topic because drug use bears on the etiology of suicide and may lead to policies aimed at deterring suicide. We use the COVDRS and logistic regression to examine postmortem presence of drugs among 3,389 hanging and firearm suicides in Colorado from 2004-2009. Net of demographic controls, we find that opiates are positively associated with firearms (OR: 1.92, 95% L: 1.27, 95% U: 2.86]) while antidepressants are positively associated with hanging (OR: 1.45, 95% L: 1.04, 95% U: 2.03). For cocaine and opiates, the association between drug use and violent method vary by educational attainment. Importantly, knowledge of the presence and type of specific drug is strongly associated with the method of suicide.

Keywords: National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS); drug use; suicide; suicide method; toxicology.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Predicted Probability of Hanging Relative to Firearms by Presence of Drug and Educational Attainment.
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