Zeitschrift für forensische Forschung

Pattern of Suicidal Methods Used in Minofiya, Gharbiya and Kafr Elshekh Governorates (2008-2012)

Abstract

Dalia Abd-Elwahab Hassan, Sherein S Ghaleb, Mohamed Abd Elghaffar Ahmed and Amr Reda Zaki

Suicide is an important health hazard worldwide. It is no longer a criminal offense in any developed country but continues to be so in many developing countries. We retrospectively analyzed the autopsy records of the Institute of Forensic Medicine during the five-year period between 2008 and 2012 to document the characteristics of fatalities resulting from suicide in Minofiya, Gharbiya and Kafr Elshekh governorates. In this study 55 suicidal cases (26 male, 29 female). Most of cases were between 20 and 50 years. Ingestion of insecticides (70.8%) was the most common pattern of suicidal method used among the cases followed by chemical poisoning (16.36%), hanging (9.9%), jumping from height (1.8%), and firearm (1.8%). A mild seasonal variation was found, however, the rate of suicidal death was influenced by warm temperatures.