(Press-News.org) SALT LAKE CITY—The Intermountain West is renowned for the beauty of its towering mountains and high deserts, but according to new research from an investigator with the University of Utah Brain Institute the region's lofty altitudes significantly influence a deadly problem: the high prevalence of suicides in this part of the country.
In the Sept. 15, 2010, online edition of the American Journal of Psychiatry, Perry F. Renshaw, M.D., Ph.D., MBA, professor of psychiatry at the U School of Medicine and an investigator with Utah Science Technology and Research (USTAR) initiative, and colleagues report that the risk for suicide increases by nearly one-third at an altitude of 2,000 meters, or approximately 6,500 feet above sea level.
The Western states have some of the highest average elevations in the nation and, according to data derived from the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), also the highest suicide rates. In 2006, the latest year for which national data was available, Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Arizona, and Oregon accounted for nine of the 10 highest suicide rates in the country. Alaska also was in the top 10 in suicide rates.
Utah's suicide rate was 10th highest in 2006; Nevada had the nation's highest rate.
The high suicide rates in the West prompted Renshaw, the study's senior author and also an investigator with the Veterans Affairs Rocky Mountain (VISN 19) Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center (MIRECC), to undertake the research. "We thought it was reasonable to ask if some aspect of high altitude is related to suicide," he said. "Altitude was the strongest factor we could find in our study. But we believe there's also some other factor we can't account for yet."
After analyzing data from a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) database with information on 3,108 counties in the lower 48 states and District of Columbia, Renshaw and his colleagues from the University of Utah Brain Institute, Veteran Affairs Salt Lake City Health System, and Case Western Reserve University concluded that altitude is an independent risk factor for suicide, and that "this association may have arisen from the effects of metabolic stress associated with mild hypoxia (inadequate oxygen intake)" in people with mood disorders. In other words, people with problems such as depression might be at greater risk for suicide if they live at higher altitudes.
The researchers also concluded that the West's higher rates of gun ownership, a well-recognized factor in suicide, and lower population density – suicide is more prevalent in rural areas – may be connected with altitude in influencing suicide rates. The study concludes, however, that gun ownership and low population density cannot sufficiently explain the prevalence of suicides at higher altitudes.
William M. McMahon, M.D., professor and chairman of psychiatry at the University of Utah, believes the study represents an important step in understanding the higher suicide rates in the Mountain Region. "Dissecting the many environmental and genetic factors leading to high rates of suicide in Utah and the surrounding mountain states has been a daunting task," he said. "This study is a real milestone."
Deborah A. Yurgelun-Todd, Ph.D., USTAR investigator, U of U professor of psychiatry, and associate director of the VISN 19, , which is based at both the Salt Lake City and Denver Veterans Affairs Medical Centers, stated that "these findings provide a new and important area of investigation for understanding suicide risk."
Utah, which according to the study has the third highest average altitude in the country – 1,940 meters or 6,364 feet above sea level – had a rate of 14.1 suicides per 100,000 people in 2006. New data from the Utah Violent Death Reporting System shows suicides in the state are on the rise, increasing nearly 13 percent from 2008 to 2009.
Colorado, the nation's highest state, with an average elevation of 2,200 meters or approximately 7,217 feet above sea level, had 15.8 suicides per 100,000 people, the seventh highest rate. Nevada had the highest suicide rate – 19.6 per 100,000 people.
To verify the study conclusions, Namkug Kim, Ph.D., the study's first author and a former post-doctoral fellow under Renshaw, conducted a similar data study in South Korea and found that the suicide rate in areas at 2,000 meters increased by 125 percent in that country.
The reasons behind suicide are complex. Research has shown that gun ownership and mental illness, such as depression, are significant factors in suicide. According to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, guns are used in 50 percent of all suicides and more than 60 percent of people who take their own lives have major depression when they complete the act.
INFORMATION:
Other research has shown that lack of oxygen at higher altitudes is associated with worsening mood that can last for up to 90 days. Understanding the full relationship between altitude and suicide will require much more study, according to Renshaw, who'd like to see epidemiologists look at the issue. "If altitude is related to suicide, then perhaps we could look with greater urgency at why this is true and what we can do to prevent it," he said.
Population density figures used in the study were determined from the same CDC database as suicide rates. Gun ownership data came from the CDC's Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, a large and ongoing telephone health survey system. The average altitude for each state in the study was determined from data developed by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
Higher altitudes hide deadly problem: Increased suicide risk
University of Utah neuroscientists' research may shed light on suicide rates in Western US, other areas
2010-09-15
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Present imperfect: Doctors in training work even when ill
2010-09-15
A new study demonstrates that young doctors often fail to heed the Biblical injunction, "physician, heal thyself." In a research letter published in the September 15, 2010, issue of JAMA, researchers report that three out of five residents surveyed came to work in the previous year while sick, possibly exposing their patients and colleagues to suboptimal performance and, in many cases, communicable disease.
The survey, which involved multiple hospitals, found that 60 percent of residents—physicians who have completed medical school and are getting on-the-job advanced ...
Researchers find selfishness can sometimes help the common good
2010-09-15
Scientists have overturned the conventional wisdom that cooperation is essential for the well-being of the whole population, finding evidence that slackers can sometimes help the common good. Researchers, from Imperial College London, the Universities of Bath and Oxford, University College London and the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology studied populations of yeast and found that a mixture of 'co-operators' and 'cheats' grew faster than a more utopian one of only "co-operators." The study, publishing next week in the online, open access journal PLoS Biology, ...
Combined impact of lifestyle factors on mortality among Chinese women
2010-09-15
In research published this week in PLoS Medicine, results from the Shanghai Women's Health Study reveal the impact of lifestyle-related factors on mortality in a cohort of Chinese women – confirming the results from other Western research studies.
The large prospective cohort study by Wei Zheng and colleagues (from Vanderbilt University & Shanghai Cancer Institute) showed that lifestyle factors other than active smoking and alcohol consumption, have a major combined impact on total mortality on a scale comparable to the effect of smoking. For example healthier lifestyle-related ...
Specialist health journalists write better news stories
2010-09-15
David Henry from the University of Toronto and colleagues analysed Australian news stories over a five-year period, and examined whether experienced specialist health reporters write better stories than other categories of journalists. They found that it does matter who writes news stories that cover the benefits and harms of health care interventions: stories written by specialist health journalists working for a single media outlet were of higher quality than those written by less experienced writers. The authors say their findings are important because "this source of ...
The 'urban advantage' in health care is more complex than it seems
2010-09-15
Amos Channon from the University of Southampton, United Kingdom and colleagues outline the complexities of urban advantage in maternal health where the urban poor often have worse access to health care than women in rural areas. They used improved methods to measure urban poverty in 30 countries, and found substantial inequalities in maternal and newborn health, and in access to health care. The authors outline two main patterns of urban inequality in developing countries, and offer recommendations for improving access to care.
INFORMATION:
Funding: No funding was received ...
Burnout associated with self-reported unprofessional conduct among medical students
2010-09-15
Medical students with higher levels of distress (burnout) were more likely to self-report unprofessional conduct related to patient care and less altruistic professional values, according to a study in the September 15 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on medical education.
"Professionalism is a core competency for all physicians. Professionalism includes being honest, acting with integrity, advocating for the needs of patients, reducing barriers to equitable health care, and adhering to an ethical code of conduct," the authors write. "Despite the widely acknowledged importance ...
Depressed medical students more likely to associate stigma with depression
2010-09-15
Medical students with moderate to severe depression more frequently endorsed several depression stigma attitudes than nondepressed students and had a higher rate of suicidal thoughts, according to a study in the September 15 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on medical education.
"Medical students experience depression, burnout, and mental illness at a higher rate than the general population, with mental health deteriorating over the course of medical training. Medical students have a higher risk of suicidal ideation and suicide, higher rates of burnout, and a lower quality ...
Educational intervention may help medical students adapt care for patients needing nonstandard care
2010-09-15
Fourth-year medical students who participated in an educational intervention were more likely to seek, identify and incorporate into care patient circumstances that may require variation from standard care, compared to students in a control group, according to a study in the September 15 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on medical education.
"Clinical decision making requires 2 distinct skills: classifying patients' conditions into diagnostic and management categories that permit the application of best-evidence guidelines, and individualizing or contextualizing care for ...
Personal sacrifices, rationalization may play role for physicians who accept gifts from industry
2010-09-15
Sunita Sah, M.B.Ch.B., B.Sc., M.B.A., M.S., and George Loewenstein, Ph.D., of Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, conducted a study to determine whether reminding resident physicians of the sacrifices made to obtain training, as well as suggesting this as a potential rationalization, increases self-stated willingness to accept gifts from industry.
In a study that included a survey of 301 U.S. resident physicians, the researchers found that "reminding physicians of sacrifices made in obtaining their education resulted in gifts being evaluated as more acceptable: 21.7 ...
Structured re-analysis of case findings may help improve diagnostic accuracy
2010-09-15
Silvia Mamede, M.D., Ph.D., of Erasmus University Rotterdam, the Netherlands and colleagues investigated whether recent experience with clinical problems provokes availability bias (overestimation of the likelihood of a diagnosis based on the ease with which it comes to mind) resulting in diagnostic errors and whether reflection (structured reanalysis of the case findings) counteracts this bias.
The researchers conducted a study in 2009 with 18 first-year and 18 second-year internal medicine residents and found that "the availability bias may occur in medical diagnosis ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Community partners key to success of vaccine clinic focused on neurodevelopmental conditions
Low-carbon collaborative dual-layer optimization for energy station considering joint electricity and heat demand response
McMaster University researchers uncover potential treatment for rare genetic disorders
The return of protectionism: The impact of the Sino-US trade war
UTokyo and NARO develop new vertical seed distribution trait for soybean breeding
Research into UK’s use of plastic packaging finds households ‘wishcycle’ rather than recycle – risking vast contamination
Vaccine shows promise against aggressive breast cancer
Adverse events affect over 1 in 3 surgery patients, US study finds
Outsourcing adult social care has contributed to England’s care crisis, argue experts
The Lancet: Over 800 million adults living with diabetes, more than half not receiving treatment, global study suggests
New therapeutic approach for severe COVID-19: faster recovery and reduction in mortality
Plugged wells and reduced injection lower induced earthquake rates in Oklahoma
Yin selected as a 2024 American Society of Agronomy Fellow
Long Covid could cost the economy billions every year
Bluetooth technology unlocks urban animal secrets
This nifty AI tool helps neurosurgeons find sneaky cancer cells
Treatment advances, predictive biomarkers stand to improve bladder cancer care
NYC's ride-hailing fee failed to ease Manhattan traffic, new NYU Tandon study reveals
Meteorite contains evidence of liquid water on Mars 742 million years ago
Self-reported screening helped reduce distressing symptoms for pediatric patients with cancer
Which risk factors are linked to having a severe stroke?
Opening borders for workers: Abe’s profound influence on Japan’s immigration regime
How skills from hospitality and tourism can propel careers beyond the industry
Research shows managers of firms handling recalls should review media scrutiny before deciding whether to lobby
New model system for the development of potential active substances used in condensate modifying drugs
How to reduce social media stress by leaning in instead of logging off
Pioneering research shows sea life will struggle to survive future global warming
In 10 seconds, an AI model detects cancerous brain tumor often missed during surgery
Burden of RSV–associated hospitalizations in US adults, October 2016 to September 2023
Repurposing semaglutide and liraglutide for alcohol use disorder
[Press-News.org] Higher altitudes hide deadly problem: Increased suicide riskUniversity of Utah neuroscientists' research may shed light on suicide rates in Western US, other areas