Uchida Chiyoko, Uchida Mai
Department of Human Development and Culture, Fukushima University, Kanayagawa 1, Fukushima, Fukushima 960-1296, Japan.
Department of Human Development and Culture and Fukushima Child Mental Health Care Center, Fukushima University, Fukushima, Japan.
J Clin Psychiatry. 2017 Apr;78(4):e404-e412. doi: 10.4088/JCP.16m10807.
Suicide is a leading cause of death for college students. The aim of this study was to identify risk factors of suicide among college students that could improve university services to help prevent college suicide.
We conducted a 23-year serial prevalence study of the prevalence and characteristics of death and suicide among 8,262,314 Japanese college students. We analyzed rates of suicide from the 1989 to 1990 academic year through the 2011-2012 academic year and characterized suicide among this population, focusing on students' sex and psychiatric and academic backgrounds to identify risk factors for suicide.
Suicide rates increased throughout the 23 years, and suicide was the leading cause of death every year from 1996 onward. Suicide accounted for 42.4% of all deaths that happened in the 23 years. Male students, medicine majors, students in the final year of their program, and students who completed extra years of schooling or took academic leaves of absence were at higher risk for suicide. Only 16.4% had received an official psychiatric diagnosis and 16.0% had received services through the university health center prior to the suicides.
Results suggest the need for a stronger support system for college students. Areas for improvement could include better advertising of mental health services, student and staff education about suicide risk factors, and mentorship and outreach programs for students in their final year of classes, those majoring in medicine, and those who have taken leaves of absence or failed classes. Accommodations at the administrative level would also be helpful for students who need to retake classes or transfer credit.
自杀是大学生死亡的主要原因。本研究旨在确定大学生自杀的风险因素，以改善大学服务，帮助预防大学生自杀。
我们对8262314名日本大学生进行了一项为期23年的关于死亡和自杀患病率及特征的系列患病率研究。我们分析了1989 - 1990学年至2011 - 2012学年的自杀率，并描述了该人群中的自杀情况，重点关注学生的性别、精神和学业背景，以确定自杀的风险因素。
在这23年中自杀率持续上升，自1996年起自杀每年都是主要死因。自杀占这23年中所有死亡人数的42.4%。男生、医学专业学生、课程最后一年的学生以及多修了学年或休了学术假的学生自杀风险更高。只有16.4%的人在自杀前得到过官方精神疾病诊断，16.0%的人在自杀前通过大学健康中心接受过服务。
结果表明需要为大学生建立更强大的支持系统。改进的领域可包括更好地宣传心理健康服务、对学生和教职员工进行自杀风险因素教育，以及为课程最后一年的学生、医学专业学生、休过假或课程不及格的学生开展指导和外展项目。行政层面的便利措施对需要重修课程或转学分的学生也会有帮助。
