Epidemiology of suicide among Austrian children and adolescents: 2015–2024

BACKGROUND: Mental health among young people and suicidality are major ongoing public health issues. This study aims to provide updated epidemiological information on youth suicides in Austria. METHODS: Suicide and population data for 10-19-year-olds were obtained from Statistics Austria. We examined the distribution of suicide methods, age, sex and regional differences, as well as monthly distribution of suicides for the period 2015-2024. In addition, we calculated trends in youth suicides using annual suicide rates for boys and girls between 2005 and 2024 and assessed if the pandemic year (2020) resulted in changes in suicide rates. RESULTS: A total of 302 youth suicides (29.5% girls) were registered between 2015 and 2024, corresponding to an overall suicide rate of 3.4 per 100,000 individuals (boys 4.7/100,000, girls 2.1/100,000; male-female ratio 2.2:1). Total suicide rate of 10-14-year-olds was 0.6/100,000 children, and total suicide rate of 15-19-year-olds was 6.1/100,000 adolescents. Hanging was the most frequent method in both sexes, followed by jumping or lying before a moving object and jumping from a high place. Significant regional differences regarding suicide rate were found. Furthermore, downward time trends were observed between 2005 and 2024 for overall suicide rates and suicide rates among boys but there was a trend towards an increase at the onset of the pandemic in 2020. CONCLUSION: Youth suicide rates in Austria continued to decline in the time period 2005-2024, but COVID-19 marked a trend towards an increase in suicide rates. The present findings are relevant to provide information on ongoing discussions on youth suicide.