Antidepressants and the Suicide Rate: Is There Really a Connection?

Matz Dahlberg (matz.dahlberg@nek.uu.se) and Douglas Lundin (douglas.lundin@lfn.se)
Additional contact information
Douglas Lundin: Läkemedelsförmånsnämnden, Postal: Box 55, 171 11 Solna, Sweden

No 2005:4, Working Paper Series from Uppsala University, Department of Economics

Abstract: Recent research claims that the major part of the observed reduction in suicide rates during the 1990’s can be explained by the increase in the prescription of antidepressants. This conclusion is however based on research that only looks at raw correlations; confounding effects from other variables are not controlled for. Using a rich data set, we reinvestigate the issue. After controlling for other covariates, observed as well as unobserved, that might affect the suicide rate, we find, overall, no statistically significant effects from antidepressants on the suicide rate; when we do get significant effects, they are positive for young persons. Regarding the latter result, more research is needed before any firm policy conclusion can be made.

Keywords: Suicide; antidepressants; Poisson fixed effects (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C23 I12 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 31 pages
Date: 2005-01-15
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hea
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

Downloads: (external link)
http://uu.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:665204/FULLTEXT01.pdf (application/pdf)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hhs:uunewp:2005_004

Access Statistics for this paper

More papers in Working Paper Series from Uppsala University, Department of Economics Department of Economics, Uppsala University, P. O. Box 513, SE-751 20 Uppsala, Sweden. Contact information at EDIRC.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Ulrika Öjdeby (ulrika.ojdeby@nek.uu.se).