Citation

Nordentoft M. Crisis 2007; 28(Suppl 1): 44-49.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2007, International Association for Suicide Prevention, Publisher Hogrefe Publishing)

DOI

10.1027/0227-5910.28.S1.44

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Availability of drugs with high lethality has been hypothesized to increase the risk of self-poisoning suicides. A literature search concerning deliberate self-poisoning and the effect of restricting access to drugs was conducted, and the effect of restrictions in availability of barbiturates, tricyclic antidepressants, dextropropoxyphene, and weak analgesics was reviewed. The correlations between method-specific and overall suicide rates and sales figures for barbiturates, dextropropoxyphene, weak analgesics, and tricyclic antidepressants were reviewed. It is concluded that restriction in availability
of drugs with high case fatality should be a part of suicide prevention strategies.