title: A focus on recent cases of suicides among Italian children and adolescents and a review of literature.
abstract: Suicidal behaviors are among the leading causes of death worldwide. The large spread of suicide suggests that educational programs and literature to parents or guardians should include information about the potential risks and potential consequences of the onset of the idea of suicide in children. We identified 55 cases of suicide among children and young adults <18-year-old occurring in Italy between 1st January, 2011 and 31st December, 2013. The results point to the need to increase our understanding of the dramatic rise in suicidal behaviors during childhood/adolescence and of the causal pathways linking these behaviors to child-adolescent mental disorders. During routine care visits, pediatricians should be skilled to recognize risk factors for adolescent suicide in order to intervene appropriately.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pediatrics, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy. pferrara@rm.unicatt.it.
authors.forename: Pietro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ferrara
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pediatrics, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy. francescaianniello@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ianniello
authors.affiliation: Campus Bio-Medico University, Rome, Italy. costanzacutrona@libero.it.
authors.forename: Costanza
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cutrona
authors.affiliation: Campus Bio-Medico University, Rome, Italy. quintarelli.fabio@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Fabio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Quintarelli
authors.affiliation: Campus Bio-Medico University, Rome, Italy. flami_nia@hotmail.it.
authors.forename: Flaminia
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Vena
authors.affiliation: Campus Bio-Medico University, Rome, Italy. valentinadv89@yahoo.it.
authors.forename: Valentina
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Del Volgo
authors.affiliation: Campus Bio-Medico University, Rome, Italy. olgacaporale@libero.it.
authors.forename: Olga
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Caporale
authors.affiliation: Campus Bio-Medico University, Rome, Italy. monicamalamisura@libero.it.
authors.forename: Monica
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Malamisura
authors.affiliation: Campus Bio-Medico University, Rome, Italy. m.chiaradeangelis@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Maria Chiara
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: De Angelis
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pediatrics, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy. antonio.gatto.8@alice.it.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gatto
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pediatrics, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy. achiaretti@yahoo.it.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chiaretti
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pediatrics, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy. riccardi@rm.unicatt.it.
authors.forename: Riccardo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Riccardi
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D013405:Suicide / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*