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. 2024 Jan 9;24(1):35.
doi: 10.1186/s12888-023-05447-8.

The patterns, trends and major risk factors of suicide among Indian adolescents - a scoping review

Rachel Elizabeth Senapati #  1 , Susangita Jena #  1 , Jayashree Parida  1 , Arpita Panda  1 , Prasanna Kumar Patra  2 , Sanghamitra Pati  1 , Harpreet Kaur  3 , Subhendu Kumar Acharya  4
Affiliations

The patterns, trends and major risk factors of suicide among Indian adolescents - a scoping review

Rachel Elizabeth Senapati et al. BMC Psychiatry. .

Abstract

Background: Adolescence is an essential stage for the development of mental health, and suicide is among the leading cause of mortality for adolescents around the world. In India, the suicide rate among adolescents has been increasing in recent years. The scoping review was conducted to map the evidence and address gaps by examining the existing pattern, and trends, and identify the major risk factors of suicide among Indian adolescents.

Methods: The study was conducted as per the Arksey and O'Malley scoping review framework and the Joanna Briggs Institute Reviewers' manual. The systematic search was performed using electronic databases such as PubMed, Google Scholar, EMBASE, and PsycINFO, by using specific keywords. After the screening, 35 articles were identified according to the inclusion criteria.

Results: The evidence on the trends of suicide among adolescents showed that the suicide rate has shown an alarming increase in recent years. The evidence pattern showed that hanging and poisoning were the commonly selected methods used by adolescents. The most commonly reported risk factors were mental health problems (54.28%), negative or traumatic familiar issues (34.28%), academic stress (22.85%), social/lifestyle factors (20%), violence (22.85%), economic distresses (8.75%), relationship factor (8.75%).

Conclusion: By synthesizing and summarising the patterns, trends, and key risk factors of suicide among Indian adolescents, this scoping review provides a broad understanding of the literature already in existence. In order to effectively tackle these issues, the finding highlights the urgent need for extensive and targeted suicide prevention measures.

Keywords: Depression; Indian adolescents; Mental health; Review-of-literature; Self-harm; Suicidal ideation.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Prisma flow diagram explaining evidence synthesis by detailing the database search and evidence retrieved
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Bibliography of the selected studies presenting pattern of research continuance by researchers, institutional representation, and publishing journals on adolescent suicidal behavior from India
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
A Trend of adolescent suicide study reports in India during the period of 2000–21. B Geographical distribution of the evidence around adolescent suicide in India. C Studies reporting major risk factors of adolescent suicide over the years
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
A pathway analysis of suicide attempts among adolescents
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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