Suicides in croatia 1993-2001: regional differences.

OBJECTIVE: With regard to historical, economical, cultural, climate and probably genetic diversity of the Republic of Croatia, it is to be expected to find significant regional differences in suicide rates. The aim of this paper is to describe the specific regional characteristics of suicide rates in Croatia and compare it with that in neighbour countries like Slovenia, Hungary and Italy.

METHOD: Using official suicide statistics, this study examined suicide rate in Croatia over a 8-years span (1993-2001) as the function of age, gender, employment and marital status and geographical regions.

RESULTS: Our results demonstrated: a). higher suicide rate in the Continental part (21.96) in comparison with the Mediterranean part (15.42) of Croatia as well as lower suicide rate in the South (10.91) compared to the North (22.28) of Mediterranean Croatia; b). higher suicide male/female ratio in the Continental (3.49) than in the Mediterranean (2.36) Croatia as well as in the North (2.77) than in the South (1.94) of Mediterranean Croatia; c). bigger percentage of suicide in younger age (15-24 years) in the South (11.58%) than in the North (3.97%) of Mediterranean Croatia; d). lowest rate of homicide and lowest divorce rate were found in the South of Mediterranean Croatia with lowest suicide rates.

CONCLUSION: This study showed significant regional differences in suicide rates accros the Republic of Croatia. With its south Mediterranean part, Croatia share the same low rate with Mediterranean neighbour Italy, while with its west-north continental part Croatia with high suicide rate is similar to its neighbours Slovenia and Hungary.