Since older age is associated with increased risk of suicide, we also investigated whether changes in age composition of the unemployed populations may explain our findings.
Background Previous studies have provided somewhat inconsistent results about the effects of season of birth on the risk of suicidal behavior. Therefore, we decided to investigate this question in a ...large sample of suicide completers. Methods We determined the season of birth-associated risk of completed suicide between the years 1970 and 2008 among all individuals who were born in the area of today's Hungary between 1930 and 1939, 1941 and 1942, and 1944 and 1969. Results The final sample of participants included around six and a half million people. About 80,000 completed suicides occurred among participants during the period investigated (the number of suicide completers in our study greatly exceeds the number of suicide completers in any previous studies). A significantly ( p < .05) elevated risk of completed suicide was found among those individuals who were born in the high-risk period (spring and summer). Quantitatively, the biggest increase (7.6% 95% confidence interval: 5.4–9.9) in suicide risk was detected among those who were born in July compared with the average risk of suicide in the population investigated. The associations between season of birth and the risk of completed suicide were stronger among male subjects than among female subjects and among those who committed suicide using violent methods than among those who chose nonviolent methods. Conclusions Our results from a large sample of suicide completers from Hungary—a country with one of the highest suicide rates in the world over the last century—strongly support the concept that the season of birth is significantly associated with the risk of completed suicide.
Abstract Coronary artery disease coexists in a clinically relevant number of patients with atrial fibrillation and it often requires percutaneous coronary intervention. These patients represent a ...particular challenge for clinicians in terms of antithrombotic management. They require combined antiplatelet–anticoagulant therapy to reduce the risk of recurrent ischemic cardiac events and stroke; however, this antithrombotic strategy is associated with an increased risk of bleeding complications. In the absence of randomized, controlled clinical trials, the majority of current recommendations rely on the results of cohort studies, meta-analyses, post-hoc analyses and subgroup analyses of large, phase III studies. Based on the available evidence, the present review discusses the optimal antithrombotic strategy for patients receiving chronic anticoagulant therapy due to atrial fibrillation who require antiplatelet treatment after acute coronary syndrome and/or percutaneous coronary intervention, and discusses the issue of dental procedures. The correct planning of therapy significantly reduces the risk of bleeding complications and thromboembolic events. Key messages In order to reduce the occurrence of recurrent cardiac ischemic events and stroke, anticoagulated patients with acute coronary syndrome and/or percutaneous coronary intervention require a combination of therapies including anticoagulants and antiplatelet drugs. Using the newest optimal combination of therapeutic strategies reduces the risk of haemorrhagic complications.
Although many scholars of Central and Eastern Europe politics write about the relative weaknesses of civil societies, some studies delivered evidence of cases where interest groups were able to ...influence particular decisions and policies. Therefore, we aimed at identifying and examining the most influential national interest groups of eight different policy areas in post-communist Hungary hoping to explore the reasons for their success. Older generations of organisations benefit from political embeddedness, while newer advocacy groups rely more on legal instruments and public mobilisation. The operation of successful groups has not been affected by the strong political polarisation of the Hungarian party system.
Both suicidal behaviour and consumption of arsenic-contaminated drinking-water represent major public health problems. Previous epidemiological and animal studies showed that high arsenic intake may ...also be associated with the elevated risk for depression. Since untreated depression is the most powerful risk factor for suicidal behaviour, we postulated that the consumption of arsenic-contaminated tap drinking-water may also be related to suicide.
Based on the level of arsenic in their drinking water Hungarian settlements with more then 500 inhabitants (n=1639) were divided into four groups. Then average age-standardized suicide rates of the four groups were compared.
We found that the higher is the arsenic level in the drinking water the higher is the suicide rate of the settlements. In addition to the practical consequences of our preliminary results (e.g. in the suicide prevention) they also suggest that high level of arsenic in drinking water might contribute, at least in part, to the well-known and stable in time regional differences in suicide mortality of Hungary since the highest arsenic levels in drinking water have been found in counties with traditionally high suicide rates, such as Bacs-Kiskun, Csongrad, Bekes and Hajdu- Bihar.
