Suicide Ideation and the Related Factors among Korean Adults by Gender

A machine learning approach for predicting suicidal ideation in post stroke patients

Currently, the identification of stroke patients with an increased suicide risk is mainly based on self‐report questionnaires, and this method suffers from a lack of objectivity. This study developed and validated a suicide ideation (SI) prediction model using clinical data and identified SI predictors. Significant variables were selected through traditional statistical analysis based on retrospective data of 385 stroke patients; the data were collected from October 2012 to March 2014. The data were then applied to three boosting models (Xgboost, CatBoost, and LGBM) to identify the comparative and best performing models. Demographic variables that showed significant differences between the two groups were age, onset, type, socioeconomic, and education level. Additionally, functional variables also showed a significant difference with regard to ADL and emotion (p < 0.05). The CatBoost model (0.900) showed higher performance than the other two models; and depression, anxiety, self-efficacy, and rehabilitation motivation were found to have high importance. Negative emotions such as depression and anxiety showed a positive relationship with SI and rehabilitation motivation and self-efficacy displayed an inverse relationship with SI. Machine learning-based SI models could augment SI prevention by helping rehabilitation and medical professionals identify high-risk stroke patients in need of SI prevention intervention.

Comparison of causes for suicidal ideation and attempt: Korean Longitudinal Survey of Women and Families

The purpose of this study was to identify factors that influence suicidal ideation and attempts among Korean women, using longitudinal data. Data from wave 4 (n = 7227), wave 5 (n = 6892), and wave 6 (n = 6632) of the Korean Longitudinal Survey of Women and Families collected on 2012, 2014, and 2016 were subjected to Kaplan-Meier and Cox regression analysis. Number of cases for suicidal ideation was 4.7% of the total cases (n = 20,751) between wave 4 through 6; number of cases for suicidal attempts was 5.7% of the cases from suicide ideation (n = 979). Depressive feelings, bad or worst health, and increased stress had significant impacts on suicidal ideation (χ² = 1867.84, p < .001; χ² = 983.61, p < .001; χ² = 884.01, p < .001) and suicidal attempts (χ² = 5.36, p < .05; χ² = 11.19, p < .01; χ² = 7.46, p < .05; χ² = 6.21, p < .05) over time, respectively. From the Cox regression analysis, non-marital status (OR = 2.50, CI = 1.40-4.48) and having more than two children (OR = 2.55, CI = 1.18-5.51) compared to not having children were identified as predictors for suicidal attempt. Although the negative effect of number of children on suicidal attempts conflicts with previous evidence, socially determined mother roles and the significance of children should be considered in culturally sensitive terms when interpreting our findings.

Gender Differences in Suicidal Ideation and Related Factors among North Korean Refugees in South Korea

OBJECTIVE

According to previous social survey, a high number of North Korean refugees (NKRs) in South Korea had suicidal ideation. The purpose of this study is to examine the related factors for suicidal ideation among NKRs by gender in South Korea.

METHODS

We examined the sample of NKRs, 701 subjects (men=160, women=-541) residing in South Korea, the participants were enrolled from October 2008 to May 2014. The related factors with suicidal ideation in NKRs were analyzed via a logistic regression analysis.

RESULTS

Refugee women were more likely to have suicidal ideation than men were. Although thoughts of suicide do not necessarily mean that they will follow through, however, there is an association that the higher rate of suicide also results in a higher rate of attempted suicide. In both genders, they tended to think more frequently about suicide who had stayed in South Korea for more than 5 years. In addition, higher frequencies of suicidal ideation also associated with higher level of perceived stress in both genders.

CONCLUSION

The gender difference should be addressed when designing suicide prevention interventions among the North Korean population in South Korea.

Age-differentiated Risk Factors of Suicidal Ideation among Young and Middle-aged Korean Adults

Objectives

This study aimed to determine the prevalence of suicidal ideation among young and middle-aged adults, and explore the risk factors that affect suicidal ideation.

Methods

A descriptive study design was used for secondary data analysis. A total sample of 5,214 was drawn from two waves (2012–2013) of the 7th Korea Health Panel (KHP) survey. The KHP data were collected by a well-trained interviewer using the face-to-face method during home visits as well as self-report method. Descriptive statistics of frequency, percentage, chi-square test, and logistic regression analysis were performed using SPSS 22.0.

Results

The prevalence of suicidal ideation in young and middle-aged adults was 4.4% and 5.6%, respectively. For young adults, suicidal ideation risk was higher among those with low income or heavy drinking habits. In middle-aged adults, low income, poor perceived health status, negative perception of peer-compared health status, and negative social perspective were the major risk factors.

Conclusion

There is considerable risk of suicidal ideation in adulthood. Opportunities for increased income, avoidance of heavy drinking, and the construction of positive subjective health status and social perspective should be considered in suicide prevention interventions for Korean young and middle-aged adults.

Socioeconomic and lifestyle factors as risks for suicidal behavior among Korean adults

BACKGROUND

Preventing suicide has become a major public health priority in Korea. The aim of this study was to evaluate the associated factors of suicidal ideation (SI(1)) and attempt (SA(2)) among Korean adults.

METHODS

The data were collected from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (KNHANES), a nationally representative sample recruited using a multi-stage clustered probability design. The association of putative risk factors focused on nutrition and health behaviors which were evaluated using multiple logistic regression analyses after adjusting for confounding factors. Survey sample weights were used for all analysis.

RESULTS

The 12-month prevalence of SI and SA in Korea was 15.0% and 0.85%, respectively. Female, previously married status, lower education and lower household income were associated with SI and SA. In particular, the effect of age on SI presented a reverse pattern based on gender; there was a positive association for men and a negative association for women. Additionally, drinking, smoking, physical activity above moderate intensity and eating fewer meals were associated with SA in women, whereas regular exercise was protective against SI in men.

LIMITATIONS

The data were collected using a cross-sectional survey, embedding possible bias.

CONCLUSIONS

Higher prevalence of SI and SA among women was associated with smoking, drinking, avoiding regular exercise and insufficiency of food. Lower prevalence of SI was observed in men who engaged in physical activity while men with insufficient food showed a higher prevalence of SI and SA.