ABSTRACT
Suicide is a critical public health problem. In developing countries, the highest suicide rate is found in young adults with remarkable increasing rate. In this study, we have evaluated the epidemiology and characteristics of 8-16-year-old individuals who attempted suicide and were hospitalized in Loghman-Hakim Hospital, Tehran, Iran from 1997 to 2007. A total of 6414 hospitalized patients, ages 8-16, who attempted suicide and were residents of Loghman-Hakim Hospital were investigated. We performed a retrospective chart review to study the characteristics of cases in a 10-year period by review of psychiatric and medical records. Out of 6414 patients 22.6% were male, 5978 patients were 12-16 years old and the rest were aged 8-12 years. During the 10-year period, suicides showed a rising trend among adults, while in children no significant increase was detected. Communicative disorders were the most common underlying risk factors, particularly in females. One patient out of five cases had psychiatric disorders, of which adjustment disorders were the most predominant. A remarkable peak in suicides was observed in May and July, while winter had the highest suicide rate among seasons. Suicide due to drug overdose is higher in females than males in young population. This increasing trend is a psychiatric concern and should be resolved by improving mental and public health
ABSTRACT
The aim of this study is the report of our experience in diagnosis of the opium body packers with CT scan. For 12 cases that confessed to opium packet ingestion, we did abdominal and pelvic CT scan without contrast and evaluated the presence, number and location of opium packets and also measured the density of packets in Hounsfield unit [HU]. Mean age of our cases was 28.2 +/- 5.9 years [ranging 17-35 years]. Eleven [91.6%] of patients were male and only one case was female. In all patients, the packets were visualized in gastrointestinal [GI] lumen by CT scan. The mean of minimum HU was 163.8 +/- 19.6 and the mean of maximum HU was 205.3 +/- 32.8. We had mortality in an eighteen years old female due to opium overdose. CT scan could be a suitable imaging modality in identifying opium packets similar that reported for cocaine and heroin