Psychosocial perspective and suicidal behaviors correlated with adolescent male smoking and illicit drug use

The prevalence of tobacco, alcohol, stimulant, khat, and cannabis use among school-going students in African and Arab countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

The objectives of this review and meta-analysis were twofold: first, to determine the prevalence of substance use among school-going children in Arab and African countries; and second, to highlight the considerable influence of variables such as the nation's region and the timeframe of the study on the prevalence of substance use.

METHODS

Research was sourced from Science Direct, Scopus, Web of Science, Google Scholar, and PubMed. Thirty-seven articles were incorporated in accordance with the PRISMA guidelines. This review included studies published from 2013 to 2023. The statistical meta-analysis was performed using Comprehensive Meta-Analysis ver. 3 software. Across 37 studies, the total number of study participants was 73,508.

RESULTS

The meta-analysis revealed that tobacco was the most commonly used substance, with a prevalence of 16% (95% confidence interval [CI], 12.7%-20.02%). This was closely followed by alcohol, which had a prevalence of 15% (95% CI, 10.5%-22.8%), stimulants at 11.4% (95% CI, 7.4%-17%), khat at 10% (95% CI, 5.7%-15%), and cannabis at 8% (95% CI, 3.3%-18.4%). Notably, alcohol was the only substance that showed an increasing trend in prevalence from before to after 2019, rising from 13.3% (95% CI, 6.2%-26.1%) to 17% (95% CI, 10.2%-27%) (p<0.001). Additionally, the prevalence of substance use varied significantly between Arab and African countries (p<0.001).

CONCLUSION

Although the prevalence of substance use among school-going populations has significantly decreased over time, with the exception of alcohol, it is imperative that both African and Arab countries implement comprehensive measures and stringent laws to address the production and marketing of substances.

Association Between Atopic Dermatitis and Suicidal Behaviors in North Korean Adolescent Defectors From 2011 to 2019

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the association between atopic dermatitis (AD) and suicidal behaviors in adolescent defectors among residents who escaped from North Korean (adolescent defectors, n=423) and adolescents with South Korean parents (Korean adolescents, n=540,265).

METHODS

The study used data from the Korea Youth Risk Behavior Survey conducted from 2011 to 2019. Differences in general characteristics, health behaviors, suicidal ideation, suicide plans, suicide attempts, and AD between adolescent defectors and Korean adolescents were examined. Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to determine the association between AD and suicidal behaviors.

RESULTS

The adolescent defectors group had lower AD (16.3% vs. 24.2%), poorer subjective health (10% vs. 6%), smoked more (47% vs. 18%), drank more (60% vs. 43%), lived with family less frequently (56% vs. 96%), and were more than twice as likely to have depression (42% vs. 27%), suicidal ideation (30% vs. 14%), a suicide plan (23% vs. 5%), or have made a prior suicide attempt (19% vs. 3%) compared with the Korean adolescent group (p<0.001). The adjusted odds ratio for the adolescent defectors group compared to the Korean adolescent group was 1.66 for suicidal ideation, 3.59 for suicide plans, and 4.34 for suicide attempts (p<0.001). AD was found to be associated with suicide plans and attempts in adolescent defectors and associated with suicidal ideation in Korean adolescents.

CONCLUSION

AD was significantly associated with suicide plans and suicidal attempts among adolescent defectors and suicidal ideation in Korean adolescents, based on a random sample of middle- and high-school students.

Prevalence of suicidal behaviour among students living in Muslim-majority countries: systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Assessing suicidal behaviours among students would help to understand the burden and enhance suicide prevention.

AIMS

We aimed to determine the prevalence of suicidal behaviour among students living in Muslim-majority countries.

METHOD

We followed Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. A systematic search was conducted in Medline, EMBASE and PsycINFO. Meta-analyses were performed to pool the lifetime, 1-year and point prevalence rates for suicidal ideation, plans and attempts.

RESULTS

From 80 studies, 98 separate samples were included in this analysis. The majority (n = 49) were from the Eastern Mediterranean, and 61 samples were of university students. The pooled prevalence of suicidal ideation was 21.9% (95% CI 17.4%-27.1%) for lifetime, 13.4% (95% CI 11.1%-16.1%) for the past year and 6.4% (95% CI 4.5%-9%) for current. The pooled prevalence of suicide plans was 6.4% (95% CI 3.7%-11%) for lifetime, 10.7% (95% CI 9.1%-12.4%) for the past year and 4.1% (95% CI 2.7%-6.2%) for current. The pooled prevalence of suicide attempts was 6.6% (95% CI 5.4%-8%) for lifetime and 4.9% (95% CI 3.6%-6.5%) for the past year. The lifetime prevalence of suicidal ideation was highest (46.2%) in South-East Asia, but the 12-month prevalence was highest (16.8%) in the Eastern Mediterranean.

CONCLUSIONS

The study revealed notably high rates of suicidal behaviours among students living in Muslim-majority countries. However, the quality of studies, differences in regional and cultural factors, stages of studentship and methods of measurement should be considered when generalising the study results.

[What is the contribution of smoking to the increased risk of suicide in young smokers? A systematic review]

OBJECTIVES

The correlation between smoking and suicide is well documented in the general population: there is an increased risk of suicide among tobacco smokers. However, the association between smoking and suicidal behaviors (ideations, plans, attempts) in youth is poorly elucidated. This is a systematic review of the literature examined data on the relationship between active and passive smoking and suicidal ideation (SI), suicide planning (SP), and suicide attempts (SA) among youth in the general population.

METHOD

Medline searches were performed for the period 1980-2020. Cross-sectional, case-control, prospective population-based studies of young people (age less than 18 years) were included in this review; studies of specific populations (patients with an identified pathology of any kind) were excluded.

RESULTS

This review included 43 studies: 23 studies on the association between active smoking and SI, SI and/or PS, TS; three studies on the association between passive smoking and suicidal behavior, three studies on the association between smoking and suicidal behavior in young people in psychiatric hospital settings, and five studies comparing the suicidal behavior of girls and boys. Analysis of the data collected lead to the conclusion that active or passive smoking is associated with suicidal behavior in young people. Smoking appears to contribute to psychopathological disorders, including depression, the use of other psychoactive substances, or psychosocial suffering which are often associated with an increased risk of suicide in young people. The correlations between smoking and the presence of mental disorders have been highlighted; tobacco use may contribute to the development of depression, anxiety and stress. Further studies are needed to verify the existence of a causal link between smoking and suicide.

CONCLUSION

Smoking is associated with the risk of suicidal behavior in young people; it should be included among the criteria for assessing suicidal risk in youth. Smoking cessation, which improves psychological well-being, should be further integrated into the prevention of suicidal behavior.

Prevalence and correlates of being bullied among adolescents in Indonesia: results from the 2015 Global School-based Student Health Survey

Introduction Violence against adolescents is prevalent in the world, yet this issue is neglected especially in developing countries. Bullying among adolescents negatively affects the victims in relation to emotional, physical, social and overall health status. This study was conducted to understand bullying and its associated factors in school-going adolescents in Indonesia. Methods This study was a correlational design with a cross-sectional approach. Data were obtained from the 2015 Indonesia Global School-based Health Survey (GSHS). As many as 9969 adolescents in schools were selected by probability proportional to size method and systematic sampling. Variables analyzed on this study were age, sex, smoking behavior, alcohol consumption, close friends and feeling of loneliness. The research instrument used the GSHS 2015 questionnaire. Chi-square (χ2) analysis and multiple logistic regression tests were conducted to determine the significance of each variable. Results A total of 19.9% of adolescents in Indonesian schools were victims of being bullied. Being bullied was associated with ≤14 years old [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) 1.30, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.17-1.45], being male (AOR 1.43, 95% CI 1.28-1.59), being a smoker (AOR 1.46, 95% CI 1.23-1.73), consuming alcohol (AOR 2.07, 95% CI 1.64-2.62), having no close friends (AOR 1.27, 95% CI 0.95-1.70) and feeling lonely (AOR 2.29, 95% CI 2.05-2.55). Conclusion Indonesian in-school adolescents report a relatively high prevalence of having been bullied. Being bullied is related to various factors depending on personal and environmental factors. School communities and health professionals' attention to adolescents should be sensitized and this issue discussed, developing strategies and minimizing the negative effect on the adolescents. Policy makers need to consider developing a social platform among adolescents to facilitate students' interaction.