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Suicide and self-harm in low- and middle- income countries during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review
,
Ann John ,
Prianka Padmanathan,
Emily Eyles,
Dana Dekel ,
Julian P. T. Higgins,
Jason Bantjes ,
Rakhi Dandona ,
Catherine Macleod-Hall ,
Luke A. McGuinness,
Lena Schmidt ,
Roger T. Webb,
David Gunnell
PLOS Global Public Health, Volume: 2, Issue: 6, Start page: e0000282
Swansea University Authors:
Ann John , Dana Dekel
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DOI (Published version): 10.1371/journal.pgph.0000282
Abstract
There is widespread concern over the potential impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on suicide and self-harm globally, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) where the burden of these behaviours is greatest. We synthesised the evidence from the published literature on the impact of the p...
| Published in: | PLOS Global Public Health |
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| ISSN: | 2767-3375 |
| Published: |
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2022
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| Online Access: |
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| URI: | https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa59741 |
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| Abstract: |
There is widespread concern over the potential impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on suicide and self-harm globally, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) where the burden of these behaviours is greatest. We synthesised the evidence from the published literature on the impact of the pandemic on suicide and self-harm in LMIC.This review is nested within a living systematic review that continuously identifies published evidence (all languages) through a comprehensive automated search of multiple databases (PubMed; Scopus; medRxiv, PsyArXiv; SocArXiv; bioRxiv; the WHO COVID-19 database; and the COVID-19 Open Research Dataset by Semantic Scholar (up to 11/2020), including data from Microsoft Academic, Elsevier, arXiv and PubMed Central.) All articles identified by the 4th August 2021 were screened. Papers reporting on data from a LMIC and presenting evidence on the impact of the pandemic on suicide or self-harm were included.A total of 22 studies from LMIC were identified representing data from 12 countries. There was an absence of data from Africa. The reviewed studies mostly report on the early months of COVID-19 and were generally methodologically poor. Few studies directly assessed the impact of the pandemic. The most robust evidence, from time-series studies, indicate either a reduction or no change in suicide and self-harm behaviour.As LMIC continue to experience repeated waves of the virus and increased associated mortality, against a backdrop of vaccine inaccessibility and limited welfare support, continued efforts are needed to track the indirect impact of the pandemic on suicide and self-harm in these countries. |
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| College: |
Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences |
| Funders: |
DK was supported by the Wellcome Trust through an Institutional Strategic Support Fund Award to the University of Bristol [204813] and the Elizabeth Blackwell Institute for Health Research,
University of Bristol. DG and JPTH are supported by the NIHR Biomedical Research Centre at
University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Bristol.
JPTH is supported by NIHR Applied Research Collaboration West at University Hospitals Bristol
and Weston NHS Foundation Trust. JPTH is a National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Senior Investigator (NF-SI-0617-10145). LAM is supported by an NIHR Doctoral Research Fellowship (DRF-2018–11-ST2-048). |
| Issue: |
6 |
| Start Page: |
e0000282 |