Global public concern of children and adolescents suicide: a new perspective and new strategies for suicide prevention in the post-pandemic era

Background

Suicide is the second leading cause of death in young people worldwide and is responsible for about 52,000 deaths annually in children and adolescents aged 5–19 years. Familial, social, psychological, and behavioral factors play important roles in suicide risk. As traumatic events such as the COVID-19 pandemic may contribute to suicidal behaviors in young people, there is a need to understand the current status of suicide in adolescents, including its epidemiology, associated factors, the influence of the pandemic, and management initiatives.

Data sources

We investigated global and regional suicide mortality rates among children and adolescents aged 5–19 years using data from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2019. The suicide mortality rates from 1990 to 2019 were examined in 204 countries and territories across six World Health Organization (WHO) regions. Additionally, we utilized electronic databases, including PubMed/MEDLINE and Scopus, and employed various combinations of terms such as “suicide”, “adolescents”, “youth”, “children”, “risk factors”, “COVID-19 pandemic”, “prevention”, and “intervention” to provide a narrative review on suicide within the pediatric population in the post-pandemic era.

Results

Despite the decreasing trend in the global suicide mortality rate from 1990 to 2019, it remains high. The mortality rates from suicide by firearms or any other specified means were both greater in males. Additionally, Southeast Asia had the highest suicide rate among the six WHO regions. The COVID-19 pandemic seems to contribute to suicide risk in young people; thus, there is still a strong need to revisit appropriate management for suicidal children and adolescents during the pandemic.

Conclusions

The current narrative review integrates up-to-date knowledge on suicide epidemiology and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, risk factors, and intervention strategies. Although numerous studies have characterized trends in suicide among young people during the pre-pandemic era, further studies are required to investigate suicide during the pandemic and new strategies for suicide prevention in the post-pandemic era. It is necessary to identify effective prevention strategies targeting young people, particularly those at high risk, and successful treatment for individuals already manifesting suicidal behaviors. Care for suicidal children and adolescents should be improved with parental, school, community, and clinical involvement.