Abstract
Objective: This study aims to investigate suicide-related deaths in Türkiye from 2018 to 2023, analyzing demographic and sociocultural characteristics to identify patterns and causes. The research seeks to provide insights for developing prevention policies.
Methods: This descriptive, retrospective study analyzed national suicide data published by the Turkish Statistical Institute for the period 2018–2023. Variables including sex, age, reason, and method of suicide were examined, along with temporal changes in annual suicide counts. Statistical analyses were performed using IBM SPSS Statistics version 26.0 and Python (v3.10) with the statsmodels, scipy.stats, and pandas libraries. Categorical variables were compared using the chi-square test, and statistical significance was set at p<0.05. Odds Ratios (ORs) and 95% Confidence Intervals (CIs) were computed to assess the direction and strength of pairwise associations. Effect sizes were calculated using Cramér’s V (0.1, 0.3, and 0.5 interpreted as small, medium, and large effects, respectively). Annual suicide mortality rates per 100,000 population were calculated by sex using annual population data. To examine temporal trends, a Negative Binomial Regression model was fitted with “Year” as the explanatory variable. Incidence Rate Ratios (IRRs) with 95% CIs were reported, and projections for 2025–2029 were generated based on the fitted model.
Results: Between 2018 and 2023, a total of 23,001 suicides were reported in Türkiye, accounting for 0.77% of all deaths in 2023. The overall suicide rate rose from 4.08 per 100,000 in 2018 to 4.95 in 2021–2022, then slightly declined to 4.79 in 2023. Male suicide rates were consistently about three times higher than female rates. Suicides occurred most frequently among individuals aged 20–39 years. More than half of all victims had a primary school education or below, and female suicides predominated among illiterate individuals. Hanging was the most common method (47.2%), followed by firearms (26.0%), with a strong association between sex and method. The leading known causes were illness (24.6%) and economic problems (7.6%), the latter being six times more frequent in males. Trend analysis indicated a significant annual increase of 3.6% in total suicides . Projections suggest the total number of suicides will reach approximately 4,853 cases by 2029, with males continuing to represent over 75% of all cases.
Conclusion: The study highlights significant gender and age differences in suicide-related deaths in Türkiye. It emphasizes the need for expanded psychosocial support services, improved chronic disease management, restriction of access to firearms, and targeted educational programs to prevent suicides.

Key words: Autopsy, Death, Statistics, Suicide