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Risk of suicide attempt and suicide in young adult refugees compared to their Swedish-born peers: a register-based cohort study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 September 2022

G. Geirsdottir ,
E. Mittendorfer-Rutz  and
R. Amin
G. Geirsdottir
Affiliation:
Karolinska Institutet, Clinical Neuroscience, solna, Sweden
E. Mittendorfer-Rutz
Affiliation:
Karolinska Institutet, Clinical Neuroscience, solna, Sweden
R. Amin*
Affiliation:
Karolinska Institutet, Clinical Neuroscience, solna, Sweden
*
*Corresponding author.

Abstract

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Introduction

Refugees, especially minors, who often have experienced traumatic events, are a vulnerable group regarding poor mental health. Little is known, however, of their risk of suicidal behaviour as young adults.

Objectives

We aimed to investigate the risk of suicidal behaviour for young adult refugees who migrated as minors. The moderating role of education and history of mental disorders in this association was also investigated.

Methods

In this register linkage study, all 19-30-year-old Swedish-born (n = 1,149,855) and refugees (n = 51,098) residing in Sweden on December 31st, 2009 were included. The follow-up period covered 2010-2016. Cox models were used to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). The multivariate models were adjusted for socio-demographic, labour market marginalisation and health-related factors.

Results

Compared to Swedish-born, the risk of suicide attempt was lower for all refugees (HR 0.78, 95% CI 0.70-0.87), and accompanied refugee minors (HR 0.77, 95% CI 0.69-0.87), but estimates did not differ for unaccompanied refugee minors (HR 0.83, 95% CI 0.62-1.10). Low education and previous mental disorders increased the risk of suicide attempt in both refugees and Swedish-born, with lower excess risks in refugees. Findings for suicide were similar to those of suicide attempt.

Conclusions

Young adult refugees have a lower risk of suicidal behaviour than their Swedish-born peers, even if they have low educational level or have mental disorders. Young refugees who entered Sweden unaccompanied do not seem to be equally protected and need specific attention.

Disclosure

No significant relationships.

Keywords

suicide attemptRefugeeUnaccompanied minorSuicide
Type
Abstract
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 65 , Special Issue S1: Abstracts of the 30th European Congress of Psychiatry , June 2022 , pp. S324
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the European Psychiatric Association
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