Social correlates of American Indian suicide and homicide rates

The state suicide rates of American Indians in 1980 showed a very different pattern of associations with state social variables than did the state suicide rates of Whites. In contrast, the homicide rates had similar associations, in particular with an index of social instability. The implications of these findings for theory are examined, and suggestions made for further research.     

Psychological and social indicators of suicide ideation and suicide attempts in Zuni adolescents.

Suicide behavior is a significant problem for many American Indian populations, often more so than in the general population, but little tribal-specific data is available. In this study, baseline data on the correlates of suicide ideation and the social and psychological differences between suicide attempters and nonattempters were collected on a sample of 84 Zuni adolescents. Results show significant correlations between a measure of suicide ideation and past suicide attempt behavior, drug use, depression, hopelessness, stress, psychological symptomatology, social support, liking for school, and interpersonal communication. Significant differences between the 30% of the students who reported having previously attempted suicide and the nonattempters were also found on these measures. Areas for education and prevention efforts are suggested. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The association between the purchase of a handgun and homicide or suicide

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to determine whether purchase of a handgun from a licensed dealer is associated with the risk of homicide or suicide and whether any association varies in relation to time since purchase. METHODS: A case-control study was done among the members of a large health maintenance organization. Case subjects were the 353 suicide victims and 117 homicide victims among the members from 1980 through 1992. Five control subjects were matched to each case subject on age, sex, and zip code of residence. Handgun purchase information was obtained from the Department of Licensing. RESULTS: The adjusted relative risk of suicide was 1.9 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.4, 2.5) for persons with a history of family handgun purchase from a registered dealer. The adjusted relative risk for homicide, given a history of family handgun purchase, was 2.2 (95% CI = 1.3, 3.7). For both suicide and homicide, the elevated relative risks persisted for more than 5 years after the purchase. CONCLUSIONS: Legal purchase of a handgun appears to be associated with a long-lasting increased risk of violent death.     

The impact of gun control on suicide and homicide across the life span.

One tactic which has been suggested to prevent suicide and homicide is to restrict the availability of lethal means for these acts. The effectiveness of this tactic over the life span was explored by examining the impact of the passage of gun control legislation in Canada in 1977 (Bill c-51). The results indicated that, while the use of firearms for suicide was reduced a little after passage of this Act, this effect was not apparent for those over the age of 65. However, for homicide, the effect of the passage of the gun control legislation was stronger for victims over the age of 55. Several suggestions were made for future research on this topic. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personality differences in attempted suicide versus suicide in adults 50 years of age or older.

The authors tested hypotheses concerning personality differences in treatment-seeking suicide attempters (AT; n = 60) and a community sample of suicides (SU; n = 43) over age 50. On the basis of prior research, the authors hypothesized that SU would be lower in Neuroticism and Openness and higher in Conscientiousness. A 2-group (AT vs. SU) multivariate analysis of covariance with NEO Personality Inventory--Revised (Informant Version) domain scores as dependent variables revealed that SU were lower in Neuroticism and higher in Conscientiousness. The authors conclude that AT and SU in this age group can be distinguished on the basis of informant ratings of personality traits. These differences can inform risk detection. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Multivariate analysis (''forensiometrics'')--a new tool in forensic medicine. Differentiation between sharp force homicide and suicide

Previous studies have shown that corticosteroids affect the changes in membrane potential evoked in CA1 hippocampal neurons by serotonin and the metabolically stable cholinergic analogue carbachol: Low corticosteroid levels induced by steroid administration to adrenalectomized rats or obtained in adrenally intact rats were associated with small transmitter responses. High corticosteroid levels induced by exogenous corticosteroid application or by an acute stress in adrenally intact rats generally evoked large transmitter responses. In the present study we investigated the consequences of this steroid modulation for the main stream of synaptic information in the CA1 hippocampal region, which is carried by amino acids. To this purpose the effect of serotonin and carbachol administration on both extracellularly and intracellularly recorded synaptic responses to Schaffer collateral stimulation were investigated. The data show that the effect of in vivo activation of corticosteroid receptors on the serotonin-induced hyperpolarization of the membrane responses is clearly reflected in the inhibitory effect of serotonin on synaptic responsiveness in the CA1 area. Low circulating levels of corticosterone or selective mineralocorticoid receptor activation reduced the serotonin mediated inhibition of synaptically evoked responses, whereas high corticosterone levels were associated with strong serotonin mediated suppression of synaptic responses. This steroid modulation seems to be specifically aimed at serotonin neurotransmission, as the cholinergic effects on excitatory synaptic transmission were not affected by the hormone treatment.     

Differentiation of visibility and alcohol as contributors to twilight road fatalities

Elevated road fatality rates at night involve multiple variables, each of which contributes to an unknown degree. In order to determine the relative contributions of reduced visibility and drivers' consumption of alcohol, we performed two quasi-experiments analyzing data recorded by the U.S. Fatal Accident Reporting System from 1980 through 1990. The results confirmed that both variables play a major role in nighttime road fatalities and revealed new evidence that they contribute differentially to two classes of fatal collisions: Degraded visibility in low illumination is associated primarily with collisions involving pedestrians and pedalcyclists, whereas drivers' consumption of alcohol plays a larger role in other fatal collisions.     

Undiagnosed bronchus carcinomas as the cause of sudden and unexpected fatalities

Cases of sudden death accompanied by impressive external bleeding may arouse suspicion of violence. On the other hand fatal hemorrhages from the respiratory tract can be caused by injuries as well as by diseases. In the age of successfully treated tuberculosis the majority of pulmonary hemorrhages is based on bronchogenic carcinomas. Examples of fatal bleeding from malignant tumours of the bronchus show the variety of morphological substrates giving rise to these hemorrhages: e.g. aneurysma-like dissection of pulmonary arteries infiltrated by bronchogenic carcinoma, leukocytoclastic destruction of vessel walls surrounded by tumour necrosis, and arrosion of small arteries in the tumour region which leads to massive hemorrhage owing to anticoagulant therapy.     

Prevalence of and risk factors for suicide attempts versus suicide gestures: Analysis of the National Comorbidity Survey.

Definitions and classification schemes for suicide attempts vary widely among studies, introducing conceptual, methodological, and clinical problems. We tested the importance of the intent to die criterion by comparing self-injurers with intent to die, suicide attempters, and those who self-injured not to die but to communicate with others, suicide gesturers, using data from the National Comorbidity Survey (n = 5,877). Suicide attempters (prevalence = 2.7%) differed from suicide gesturers (prevalence = 1.9%) and were characterized by male gender, fewer years of education, residence in the southern and western United States; psychiatric diagnoses including depressive, impulsive, and aggressive symptoms; comorbidity; and history of multiple physical and sexual assaults. It is possible and useful to distinguish between self-injurers on the basis of intent to die. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Presenting problems of parasuicides versus suicide ideators and nonsuicidal psychiatric patients.

Compared 62 individuals admitted to an inpatient psychiatric unit for an immediately preceding parasuicide, with current suicidal ideation, or for nonsuicidal psychiatric reasons with each other on the types of problems they reported as being most significant in their current lives. Parasuicidal patients reported interpersonal problems with significantly greater frequency than did both suicide ideators and nonsuicidal psychiatric patients. Results could not be attributed to between-groups differences on sex, age, depression, or recent life stress. (4 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gravitoinertial force versus the direction of balance in the perception and control of orientation.

I. S. Curthoys and N. J. Wade (see record 1990-13799-001) appeal to land-based data in defending the traditional view that stimulation of the otolith organs leads to perception of the direction of gravitoinertial force. However, such data do not permit rejection of the hypothesis that the perception of orientation is based on the dynamically defined direction of balance, which is qualitatively different from the kinetically defined direction of gravitoinertial force. Furthermore, the approach of Curthoys and Wade is compromised by their failure to consider relations between the perception and control of orientation. Such relations must be considered in developing a general theory of orientation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Angular velocity and head direction signals recorded from the dorsal tegmental nucleus of gudden in the rat: Implications for path integration in the head direction cell circuit.

When a rat navigates through space, head direction (HD) cells provide an ongoing signal of the rat's directional heading. It is thought that these cells rely, in part, on angular path integration of the rat's head movements. This integration requires that the HD cell system receive information about angular head movements and that this information be combined with the current directional signal, to generate the next "predicted" direction. Recent data suggest that the dorsal tegmental nucleus (DTN) may play a critical role in helping to generate the HD cell signal. To test this, recordings were made from cells in the DTN in freely moving rats. The following cell types were found: (a) "classic" HD cells, (b) angular velocity cells, and (c) cells that fired as a function of both head direction and angular velocity. Thus, DTN cells exhibit firing characteristics that are critical to the neural circuit hypothesized for generation of the HD cell signal. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Caulobacter and Asticcacaulis stalk bands as indicators of stalk age

The prosthecae (stalks) of dimorphic caulobacters of the genera Caulobacter and Asticcacaulis are distinguished among such appendages by the presence of disk-like components known as stalk bands. Whether bands are added to a cell's stalk(s) as a regular event coordinated with the cell's reproductive cycle has not been settled by previous studies. Analysis of the frequency of stalks with i, i + 1, i + 2, etc. bands 'among more than 7,000 stalks of Caulobacter crescentus revealed that in finite (batch) cultures (in which all offspring accumulate), the proportion of stalks with i + 1 hands was regularly 50% of the proportion of stalks with i bands. This implied that the number of bands correlated with the number of reproductive cycles completed by a stalked cell. In chemostat-maintained perpetual cultures, the proportion was greater than 50% because stalked cells, with their shorter reproductive cycle times, contributed a larger proportion of offspring to the steady-state population than did their swarmer siblings. In Asticcacaulis biprosthecum cells, which bear twin prosthecae, the twins on a typical cell possessed the same number of bands. For both genera, stalk bands provide a unique morphological feature that could be employed in an assessment of age distribution and reproductive dynamics within natural populations of these caulobacters.     

Facial dynamics as indicators of trustworthiness and cooperative behavior.

Detecting cooperative partners in situations that have financial stakes is crucial to successful social exchange. The authors tested whether humans are sensitive to subtle facial dynamics of counterparts when deciding whether to trust and cooperate. Participants played a 2-person trust game before which the facial dynamics of the other player were manipulated using brief (     

Specialized surgical aid in peace-time firearm wounds of thorax and abdomen

The experience with 504 cases of fire-arm wounds of the thorax and the abdomen in peace-time, peculiarities of organization of surgical aid and management of victims in conditions of a big city are reviewed. Principal difference with war-field tactics of surgeons is shown.     

Rats with fimbria-fornix lesions are impaired in path integration: a role for the hippocampus in "sense of direction"

Animals can locate their present position in relation to a starting point and return to that starting point using cues generated by self-movement, a navigation strategy called dead-reckoning. Because contemporary research on spatial navigation suggests that some aspects of spatial navigation depend on the integrity of the hippocampal formation, whereas others do not, the present study examined whether dead-reckoning is hippocampally dependent. The task capitalized on the proclivity of foraging rats to carry large food pellets to a shelter for eating. Control rats and rats with fimbria-fornix (FF) lesions left a hidden burrow to search for one piece of food located somewhere on a circular table. The accuracy with which they returned to the burrow with the food was measured. In three experiments, rats received probe trials in which they (1) started from novel locations, (2) wore blindfolds to obscure visual cues, and (3) foraged under a condition in which surface cues, e.g., odors left by their outward searches, were displaced. Both sighted control and FF rats preferentially used visual cues for guidance when foraging from a familiar location. Control rats were accurate and FF rats were impaired in returning to novel starting locations (1) when sighted, (2) when blindfolded, and (3) when blindfolded in tests in which surface cues were displaced. These results, as well as detailed observations on the behavior of the animals, are consistent with the hypothesis that rats can use dead-reckoning to solve spatial problems, and this ability depends on the integrity of the hippocampal formation.     

Event-related correlates of response suppression as indicators of novelty seeking in alcoholics

We examined amplification of the c-met, c-erbB-2, and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene in the patients with primary gastric cancer, and compared the data with clinical features in order to clarify the relationship between oncogenic abnormality and clinical features. Oncogene amplifications were examined by slot blot hybridization using DNAs extracted from formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded tissues of primary gastric cancers. Seven of the seventy cancers (10.0%) had c-met gene amplification, nine (12.9%) had c-erbB-2 gene amplification, and six (8.6%) had EGFR gene amplification, respectively. Eighteen cases (25.7%) exhibited one or multiple oncogene amplification, and two cases (2.9%) exhibited simultaneous amplification of the three genes. The cases with c-met gene amplification tend to show invasive character and were related to peritoneal dissemination. The cases with c-erbB-2 gene amplification were related to lymph node metastasis. The cases with EGFR gene amplification had large tumors and were in highly advanced stage. The survival rate in patients with oncogene amplification was significantly lower than that in patients without amplification. Our data indicated that these genes were related to growth and metastasis of gastric cancer. Furthermore, this study about the three genes suggested that the type of activated gene might decide on the type of metastasis and clinical features.     

Evaluation of cell-mediated immunity and circulating immune complexes as prognostic indicators in cancer patients

Cell-mediated immunity (CMI) and circulating immune complexes (CIC) were estimated in 55 cancer patients and 25 control volunteers to evaluate their prognostic significance. Cancer patients comprised head and neck cancer (11), breast cancer (13), gastrointestinal cancer (10), genitourinary cancer (11), and lymphomas and sarcomas (10). CMI was tested in vitro by early rosette-forming cells (ARFC) and total rosette-forming cell (TRFC) counts. ARFC count in control group was 758.1 +/- 78.09 cells/cumm. In advancing clinical stages of cancer (I-IV), ARFC counts were decreased (i.e., 601.12 +/- 74.96 [p < 0.01]; 494.8 +/- 71.83 [p < 0.001]; 432.44 +/- 36.05 [p < 0.001], and 438.55 +/- 69.99 [p < 0.001] cells/cumm, respectively). TRFC count in control group was 1029 +/- 88.39 cells/cumm. In cancer stages I through IV, these counts decreased significantly (i.e., 699.63 +/- 66.24; 597.55 +/- 82.9; 505.11 +/- 52.56; and 501.55 +/- 69.99 cells/cumm, respectively [p < 0.001]. Dinitrochlorobenzene cutaneous reactivity in vivo was 100% positive in control group, 62.5% positive in cancer stage I, 5% positive in stage II, and negative in stages III and IV. CIC of intermediate size were estimated by polyethylene glycol precipitation (PEG pptn) technique, which detects CIC in the ratio of 2:1 (Ag2Ab). Mean PEG index in control group was 39.5 +/- 4.65; sequential increase in CIC was observed in advancing clinical stages of cancer (I-IV)(i.e., 49 +/- 7.03 [p < 0.01]; 75.38 +/- 44.01 [p < 0.001]; 93.38 +/- 44.57 [p < 0.001]; and 216.00 +/- 147.05 [p < 0.001], respectively). Latex agglutination inhibition (LAI) titer was done to detect CIC as small as 8s, which constitute the opposite polar end of CIC spectrum. LAI titers in control group were nil. However, LAI titers in cancer stages I through IV were 1 +/- 2.64; 8.6 +/- 5.6 (p < 0.001); 12.00 +/- 8.11 (p < 0.001); and 25.77 +/- 9.06 (p < 0.001), respectively. Decrease in CMI and subsequent increase in CIC indicate unfavorable prognosis in cancer patients, and also precede clinical manifestation of increased tumor mass in vivo.