Citation

Bozsonyi K, Lester D, Fülöp A, Zonda T, Balint L. Neuropsychopharmacol. Hung. 2020; 22(1): 23-28.

Affiliation

Károli Gáspár University of the Reformed Church in Hungary, Institute of Social and Communication Sciences, Department of Communication, Budapest, Hungary. bozsonyi.karoly.bk@gmail.com.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, Neuroline - Hungarian Association of Psychopharmacology)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

32329750

Abstract

BACKGROUND: A couple of studies suggest that sunshine duration and ambient temperature contribute to suicide. Few studies have happened in East-Central European area.

OBJECTIVE: We scrutinized the daily suicide rates and other measured meteorological parameters spanning from 1971 to 2013 in the region of Hungary exhibiting the highest suicide rate.

METHODS: The meteorological parameters measured in the area signified the independent variables of the statistical model, while the observed suicide rate connoted the dependent variable. Dynamic Regression, a time series analytical method was employed for creating the model.

RESULTS: Three meteorological parameters displayed a weak, yet statistically significant relationship with suicide rates. 1/ Daily sunshine duration has shown an immediate, significant positive correlation, 2/ daily changes in temperature at ground level also exhibited a significant relationship, albeit it followed a complex transient profile overarching three days. Tropopause height was also significant in the model: an immediate positive effect was followed by a negative effect six days later.

CONCLUSIONS: We estimated consistent and immediate positive associations between daily suicide and daily change of elevated ambient temperature and duration of sunshine in a high rated area of Hungary.

Language: en