title: [Homicide and suicide in 15 to 24 year-old people in Colombia, 1998-2008].
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Psychosocial behaviors are the object of indifference, which has lead to a generalized increase in attitudes favoring violence. Among these, we can find young people as victims or killers.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To describe the behavior of mortality due to homicide and suicide in young population between 15 and 24 years old in the departments of Colombia from 1998 to 2008.
  
  
  METHODS
  This was a descriptive study form a secondary source. We used 150,433 death certificates with homicide or suicide as cause of death in 15 to 24 years old population in Colombia during the period 1998-2008. We calculated an index for favorable conditions for violence according to economical, social and educational variables.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mortality rate was 95.6 deaths/100,000 people in this age range for homicide, and 10.1 for suicide. Men showed greater risk than women, with it being 12.3 higher for homicide and 1.2 for suicide. This evidences the way in which violence takes productive and reproductive lives, thus affecting the structure by sex and age and decreasing the opportunity window, but having a higher risk in some departments more than in others.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  According to the index for conditions for violence, the departments of Vaupés, Guaviare, Arauca and Guainía are the ones with more favorable conditions for an increased risk of dying by homicide and suicide in people from 15 to 24 years old, regardless of other departments having higher deaths rates.
authors.affiliation: Facultad de Medicina, Universidad CES, Medellín, Colombia.
authors.forename: Doris
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Cardona
authors.affiliation: Facultad de Medicina, Universidad CES, Medellín, Colombia.
authors.forename: Ángela María
authors.initials: ÁM
authors.lastname: Segura
authors.affiliation: Universidad de Antioquia, Medellín, Colombia.
authors.forename: Adriana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Espinosa
authors.affiliation: Hospital Pablo Tobón Uribe, Medellín, Colombia.
authors.forename: Alejandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Segura
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D003105:Colombia / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006708:Homicide / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009026:Mortality / Q000639:trends; D013405:Suicide / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013997:Time Factors; D014754:Violence; D055815:Young Adult