Skip to main content

Advertising Disclaimer »

Main menu

  • Journals
    • Pediatrics
    • Hospital Pediatrics
    • Pediatrics in Review
    • NeoReviews
    • AAP Grand Rounds
    • AAP News
  • AAP Policy
    • Topic/Program Collections
    • Policy
  • Pediatric Collections
    • COVID-19
    • Racism and Its Effect on Pediatric Health
    • More Collections...
  • Multimedia
    • Video Abstracts
    • Pediatrics On Call Podcast
  • Alerts
    • Table of Contents
    • Insights
  • AAP Career Center
  • Subscribe
  • Other Publications
    • American Academy of Pediatrics

User menu

  • Log in
  • My Cart

Search

  • Advanced search
American Academy of Pediatrics

AAP Gateway

Advanced Search

AAP Logo

  • Log in
  • My Cart
  • Journals
    • Pediatrics
    • Hospital Pediatrics
    • Pediatrics in Review
    • NeoReviews
    • AAP Grand Rounds
    • AAP News
  • AAP Policy
    • Topic/Program Collections
    • Policy
  • Pediatric Collections
    • COVID-19
    • Racism and Its Effect on Pediatric Health
    • More Collections...
  • Multimedia
    • Video Abstracts
    • Pediatrics On Call Podcast
  • Alerts
    • Table of Contents
    • Insights
  • AAP Career Center
  • Subscribe

Children's hospitals admissions for suicidal thoughts, actions double during past decade

May 04, 2017
  • PAS Meeting Updates

SAN FRANCISCO – The number of children and adolescents admitted to children’s hospitals for thoughts of suicide or self-harm more than doubled during the last decade, according to new research being presented at the 2017 Pediatric Academic Societies Meeting in San Francisco.

Researchers will present the study abstract, “Trends in Suicidality and Serious Self-Harm for Children 5-17 Years at 32 U.S. Children’s Hospitals, 2008-2015,” on Sunday, May 7, at the Moscone West Convention Center.

The study included administrative data from 32 children’s hospitals across the U.S. and identified all emergency department and inpatient encounters between 2008 and 2015 for children between 5 and 17 years old with a discharge diagnosis of suicidality or serious self-harm.

The researchers found a total of 118,363 such encounters at the children’s hospitals during the period studied. Further analysis showed the annual percentage of all encounters identified as suicidality or self-harm more than doubled over the study period, increasing from 0.67% in 2008 to 1.79% in 2015.

Slightly more than half the patients with suicidal thoughts or actions (totaling 59,631) were with 15- to 17-year-olds, while 36.9% (43,682) were with 12- to 14-year-olds. An additional 12.7% (15,050) of the encounters were with children between ages 5 and 11.

Significant increases were noted in all age groups but were higher among the older children, said lead author Gregory Plemmons, M.D., an associate professor of pediatrics at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt. Teens between ages 15 and 17 had an average annual increase of 0.27 percentage points, and 12- to 14-year-olds an average of 0.25% each year. This compares to 0.02% for 5- to 11-year-olds.

The study also revealed seasonal variations in the suicidality and self-harm cases, with the lowest percentage occurring during summer (June through August) and the highest during spring (March through May) and fall (September through November).

Plemmons said the study’s finding echo trends identified in recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“Research to understand factors contributing to these alarming trends is urgently needed,” Dr. Plemmons said, adding that awareness of these trends is also critical for staff preparedness at children’s hospitals.

Dr. Plemmons will present the abstract, “Trends in Suicidality and Serious Self-Harm for Children 5-17 Years at 32 U.S. Children’s Hospitals, 2008-2015,” beginning at 4:15 p.m. The abstract is available at https://registration.pas-meeting.org/2017/reports/rptPAS17_Abstracts.asp.


The Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) Meeting brings together thousands of individuals united by a common mission: to improve child health and well-being worldwide. This international gathering includes pediatric researchers, leaders in academic pediatrics, experts in child health, and practitioners. The PAS Meeting is produced through a partnership of four organizations leading the advancement of pediatric research and child advocacy: Academic Pediatric Association, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Pediatric Society, and Society for Pediatric Research. For more information, visit the PAS Meeting online at www.pas-meeting.org, follow us on Twitter @PASMeeting and #pasm17, or like us on Facebook. For additional AAP News coverage, visit http://www.aappublications.org/collection/pas-meeting-updates.

Copyright © 2017 American Academy of Pediatrics

Advertising Disclaimer »

Download PDF
Email News Article

Thank you for your interest in spreading the word on American Academy of Pediatrics.

NOTE: We only request your email address so that the person you are recommending the page to knows that you wanted them to see it, and that it is not junk mail. We do not capture any email address.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
Children's hospitals admissions for suicidal thoughts, actions double during past decade
(Your Name) has sent you a message from American Academy of Pediatrics
(Your Name) thought you would like to see the American Academy of Pediatrics web site.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Share
Children's hospitals admissions for suicidal thoughts, actions double during past decade
May 04, 2017
del.icio.us logo Digg logo Reddit logo Twitter logo CiteULike logo Facebook logo Google logo Mendeley logo
  • Tweet Widget
  • Facebook Like
  • Google Plus One
  • Digital Edition Current Issue
  • Latest Daily News
  • Archives
  • Collections
  • Columns
  • Advertising
  • Subscribe to AAP News Magazine
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Statement
  • FAQ
  • Contact Us
  • 2021 AAP Journals Catalog
  • Pediatrics
  • Pediatrics in Review
  • Hospital Pediatrics
  • NeoReviews
  • AAP Grand Rounds
  • AAP Career Center
  • shopAAP
  • AAP.org
  • AAP News
  • Visit AAP News on Facebook
  • Follow AAP News on Twitter
American Academy of Pediatrics

© 2021 American Academy of Pediatrics