Methamphetamine and male suicide in the US-Mexico border region ()
ABSTRACT
Introduction: Studying the
use of psychoactive substances in completed suicide is essential in order to
understand its role in the suicide generating stimuli. The most commonly
reported substances are alcohol and opioids. Method: This is a retrospective
study of completed suicide database of the Forensics Medical office in the city
of Mexicali from 1999 to 2005. This is the capital of the Mexican state of Baja
California in the US-Mexico border region. Results: Out of 288 suicides, 260
were men, and the most frequent drug found on autopsy was methamphetamine (p < 0.001). The modal victim was a
young male (20 - 39 years old), employed in blue-collar jobs, lived in an urban
area, found in their homes, and died by hanging. Discussion: Although no
causal effect can be drawn, our study results suggest that methamphetamine use
may be a risk factor for suicide in this sample.
Share and Cite:
Fuentes, E. , Ng, B. and Hernández, I. (2013) Methamphetamine and male suicide in the US-Mexico border region.
Open Journal of Internal Medicine,
3, 30-33. doi:
10.4236/ojim.2013.32007.