(Press-News.org) The number of California teens who have been treated for self-harm has ballooned in recent years, with an especially concerning increase among multiracial girls, according to new research from the University of California, Berkeley, published today (Monday, April 14) in JAMA Pediatrics.
Using data from California emergency departments and inpatient care facilities from 2005 to 2021 — 231,232 reports in total — researchers examined both how the rate of annual nonfatal self-harm incidents has changed, as well as rate differences based on age, sex, and race and ethnicity.
The study found the overall self-harm rate among young people more than doubled, from 191 to 453 per 100,000 person-years — a public health metric used to track the incidence of disease or other life events. Researchers also found that nearly 73% of adolescents with treated self-harm injuries in California were girls.
White girls between 15 and 19 years old had the highest rate of self-harm in 2005 and have seen rates steadily increase since then. But multiracial adolescents have seen an increase of approximately 75% in self-harm rates since 2016. By 2021, self-harm rates were highest among multiracial teen girls, followed by those who are white.
Among boys, multiracial teens had the highest rates of self-harm and saw rates roughly double between 2016 and 2020. American Indian, white and Black boys saw rates increase, though not as dramatically.
"It's both the amount and also these increases that we're seeing over time that are most concerning," said Emily Liu, a Ph.D. candidate at UC Berkeley's School of Public Health and first author of the research.
While prior work has found that girls are at higher risk of self-harm than boys, Liu's research shows incidences of self-harm are not universal across demographics.
"It's important to look at the data not just by sex, not just by age, not just by race or ethnicity, but by the intersection of all of these three things. It really does highlight the differences," Liu said. "The rates are rising, and we really need to pay attention to multiracial adolescents."
Researchers expected a dip in self-harm cases treated at hospitals in 2020 and 2021, when people may have avoided health care facilities due to the raging COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, the incidences still rocketed up, according to the analysis.
"If anything, it's a bit of an undercount for those two years," said Jennifer Ahern, a professor of epidemiology at UC Berkeley's School of Public Health and senior author of the research. "We know that this mental health crisis is not itself news. But self-harm injuries are very concrete physical manifestations of that crisis.”
"This is really on the rise," she added, "and we would want clinicians to be prepared to help these children when they are appearing for care."
Much has been written about what's driving the teen mental health crisis. Cell phones and social media are often seen as a main culprit, though researchers differ on how much blame devices and apps deserve. Better documentation practices at hospitals and a decrease in social stigma about seeking mental health help are also thought by some to have driven some of the increases in self-harm reports.
Explaining what is driving the increase was beyond the scope of the new research, Liu said.
Liu and her colleagues from UC Berkeley, New York University and the University of Minnesota conducted their analysis late last year and felt compelled to call attention to the work in a major journal as soon as possible. They announced their findings today as a relatively brief research letter, as opposed to waiting to publish a longer academic article, with the intent of drawing the attention of medical practitioners and those who work with adolescents.
"This is an urgent issue that they need to pay attention to, "Liu said. "They should be prepared to be able to address health self-harm when it presents and also to think about ways to prevent it."
END
UC Berkeley analysis finds steep increase of self-harm among California girls, multiracial youth
While documented self-harm rates have increased across the board, researchers found multiracial girls, in particular, have seen incidences surge since 2016.
2025-04-14
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Study sheds light on how inherited cancer mutations drive tumor growth
2025-04-14
Most cancer genome studies have focused on mutations in the tumor itself and how such gene variants allow a tumor to grow unchecked. A new study, led by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, takes a deep dive into inherited cancer mutations measured in a healthy blood sample and reports how those mutations might take a toll on the body’s cells starting at birth, perhaps predisposing a person to develop cancers at various stages of life.
The authors analyzed the inherited genomes of more than 1,000 cancer patients and determined how inherited mutations — ...
Popular CT scans could account for 5% of all cancer cases a year
2025-04-14
Popular CT Scans Could Account for 5% of All Cancer Cases A Year
Radiation from imaging could lead to lung, breast and other future cancers, with 10-fold increased risk for babies
CT scans may account for 5% of all cancers annually, according to a new study out of UC San Francisco that cautions against overusing and overdosing CTs.
The danger is greatest for infants, followed by children and adolescents. But adults also are at risk, since they are the most likely to get scans.
Nearly 103,000 cancers are predicted to result from the 93 million CTs that were ...
Deep-sea mining risks leads study to urge shift to circular solutions
2025-04-14
Deep-sea mining (DSM) not only poses significant environmental, social, and economic risks that may have far-reaching implications for coastal communities and Small Island Developing States (SIDS), it is also likely to negatively affect the business community, including insurers and investors, says a new study by researchers from the University of British Columbia and the Dona Bertarelli Philanthropy.
DSM operations are expected to increase the negative impact on environmental indicators by up to 13 per cent, a change categorized as having “great” significance, relative to the “without” DSM scenario, ...
Dynamically controlled flight altitudes in robo-pigeons via locus coeruleus neurostimulation
2025-04-14
Background
Robo-pigeon / Cyborg pigeon is a new type of hybrid intelligent robotic system developed by combining micro-implantable brain-computer interface (BCI) and micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) technologies. By integrating the perception, motion and autonomous intelligence of real pigeons with the high precision, repeatability and controllability of MEMS, a flexible and efficient "biological flight platform" is formed, which has a broad application prospect in key fields such as disaster rescue, national defense security and environmental monitoring.
However, ...
Using AI to monitor inaccessible locations of nuclear energy systems
2025-04-14
Whether it’s for your vehicle or your home, from small-scale uses to the largest, the debate over the most efficient and cost-effective fuels continues. Currently, there’s no shortage of options either.
Nuclear power provides an alternative to more conventional energy options but requires rigorous systems monitoring and safety procedures. Machine learning could make keeping a close eye on key elements of nuclear systems easier and response time to issues faster.
Syed Bahauddin Alam, an assistant professor ...
Outcomes for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma with pulmonary metastasis: Surgical vs. immunotherapy
2025-04-14
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide, with over 70% of patients diagnosed at an advanced stage due to the absence of symptoms. A key characteristic of advanced HCC is extrahepatic metastasis, particularly pulmonary metastasis, which is associated with a poor prognosis.
Although multitargeted tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) and immune checkpoint inhibitors have limited efficacy when used alone in advanced HCC, their combination can enhance outcomes for patients with pulmonary metastases. Meanwhile, pulmonary metastasectomy ...
How flexible wearables protect astronauts' health in space
2025-04-14
A review published recently in Wearable Electronics examines the current applications and persistent challenges of flexible wearable technologies in aerospace medicine. As human space exploration progresses toward extended-duration missions, the imperative for real-time monitoring of astronauts' physiological and psychological well-being has become increasingly critical. The unique space environment characterized by microgravity conditions, cumulative radiation exposure, and extreme thermal fluctuations presents multifaceted health risks to crew members.
Flexible wearable systems, equipped ...
Pregnancy complications contribute to cardiovascular risk for overweight women, study finds
2025-04-14
Complications during pregnancy (or adverse pregnancy outcomes), like gestational diabetes and newly developed high blood pressure, act as nature’s stress test and may uncover an individual’s risk for heart disease later in life, according to new research published in the JACC, the flagship journal of the American College of Cardiology. The study also highlights how weight management before pregnancy may not only improve maternal health but also reduce future cardiovascular disease risk.
The observational study, which ...
Simple medication can save the lives of cardiac patients
2025-04-14
Cardiovascular disease is by far the most common cause of death worldwide, and myocardial infarction is the most common acute event. For those who survive a myocardial infarction, the risk of a new heart attack is greatest in the first year after the initial event because the blood vessels are more sensitive, making it easier for blood clots to develop. Reducing the “bad” cholesterol in the blood stabilises changes in the vessels, decreasing the risk for new events. The current established routine treatment is to treat with high-potency statins, immediately after the infarction. However, the majority ...
Combination of drugs could prevent thousands of heart attacks
2025-04-14
LUND UNIVERSITY/IMPERIAL COLLEGE LONDON PRESS RELEASE
[Peer-reviewed /Simulation/Modelling / People]
UNDER EMBARGO UNTIL:
Monday 14th April 2025
10:00 am US Eastern Time / 3:00 pm UK Time
Combination of drugs could prevent thousands of heart attacks
Patients who receive an add-on medication soon after a heart attack have a significantly better prognosis than those who receive it later, or not all.
This is according to a new study from researchers at Lund University in Sweden and Imperial College London. ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
The Journal of Nuclear Medicine Ahead-of-Print Tip Sheet: May 9, 2025
Stability solution brings unique form of carbon closer to practical application
New research illustrates the relationship between moral outrage on social media and activism
New enzyme capable of cleaving cellulose should revolutionize biofuel production
Krebs von den Lungen-6 as a biomarker for distinguishing between interstitial lung disease and interstitial lung abnormalities based on computed tomography findings
Chimpanzee groups drum with distinct rhythms
Wasp mums use remarkable memory when feeding offspring
Americans’ use of illicit opioids is higher than previously reported
Estimates of illicit opioid use in the U.S.
Effectiveness and safety of RSV vaccine for U.S. adults age 60 or older
Mass General Brigham researchers share tool to improve newborn genetic screening
Can frisky flies save human lives?
Heart rhythm disorder traced to bacterium lurking in our gums
American Society of Plant Biologists names 2025 award recipients
Protecting Iceland’s towns from lava flows – with dirt
Noninvasive intracranial source signal localization and decoding with high spatiotemporal resolution
A smarter way to make sulfones: Using molecular oxygen and a functional catalyst
Self-assembly of a large metal-peptide capsid nanostructure through geometric control
Fatty liver in pregnancy may increase risk of preterm birth
World record for lithium-ion conductors
Researchers map 7,000-year-old genetic mutation that protects against HIV
KIST leads next-generation energy storage technology with development of supercapacitor that overcomes limitations
Urine, not water for efficient production of green hydrogen
Chip-scale polydimethylsiloxane acousto-optic phase modulator boosts higher-resolution plasmonic comb spectroscopy
Blood test for many cancers could potentially thwart progression to late stage in up to half of cases
Women non-smokers still around 50% more likely than men to develop COPD
AI tool uses face photos to estimate biological age and predict cancer outcomes
North Korea’s illegal wildlife trade threatens endangered species
Health care workers, firefighters have increased PFAS levels, study finds
Turning light into usable energy
[Press-News.org] UC Berkeley analysis finds steep increase of self-harm among California girls, multiracial youthWhile documented self-harm rates have increased across the board, researchers found multiracial girls, in particular, have seen incidences surge since 2016.