title: Birthday blues: examining the association between birthday and suicide in a national sample.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Socioculturally meaningful events have been shown to influence the timing of suicide, but the influence of psychiatric disorder on these associations has seldom been studied.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the association between birthday and increased risk of suicide in the general population and in a national sample of psychiatric patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data on general population suicides and suicide by individuals in recent care of mental health services were examined for day of death in relation to one's birthday using Poisson regression analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  An increased risk of suicide was observed on day of one's birthday itself for males in both the general population (IRR = 1.39, 95% CI = 1.18-1.64, p < .01) and the clinical population (IRR = 1.48, 95% CI = 1.07-2.07, p = .03), especially for those aged 35 years and older. In the clinical population, risk was restricted to male patients aged 35-54 and risk extended to the 3 days prior to one's birthday.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Birthdays are periods of increased risk for men aged 35 and older in the general population and in those receiving mental health care. Raising health-care professionals' awareness of patient groups at greater risk at this personally significant time may benefit care planning and could facilitate suicide prevention in these individuals.
authors: National Confidential Inquiry into Suicide and Homicide by People with Mental Illness, Centre for Suicide Prevention, University of Manchester, UK. alyson.williams@manchester.ac.uk
authors: Alyson
authors: A
authors: Williams
authors: David
authors: D
authors: While
authors: Kirsten
authors: K
authors: Windfuhr
authors: Harriet
authors: H
authors: Bickley
authors: Isabelle M
authors: IM
authors: Hunt
authors: Jenny
authors: J
authors: Shaw
authors: Louis
authors: L
authors: Appleby
authors: Navneet
authors: N
authors: Kapur