Drug poisoning in England and Wales
Given the popularity of drug-related poisoning as a method of suicide, it may be of interest to read information on the most popular drugs used.
For both men and women, paracetamol and its compounds was the most common substance mentioned on drug-poisoning suicide death certificates, with antidepressants a close second. In 1993 benzodiazepines (drugs generally prescribed for anxiety and sleeping difficulties) were the third most commonly mentioned substance, but this was beaten into third place by heroin/morphine in the 2001 figures. This is probably related to trends in the prescribing of drugs.
Top three methods used in England & Wales poisoning suicides, 20011
|
|
Men |
Women |
|
Paracetamol (acetaminophen) including compounds |
26% |
32% |
|
All antidepressants |
22% |
28% |
|
Heroin/morphine No specific drug mentioned |
11%
|
11% |
Whist paracetamol and its compounds tops the list of poisoning suicides, and has done for quite some time, it should be noted that between 2005 and 2007, co-proxamol (a prescription-only analgesic that combines dextropropoxyphene hydrochloride 32.5 mg and paracetamol 325 mg), one of the most popular forms of paracetamol used for suicide, was phased out. This resulted in a more than halving of the number of co-proxamol related suicides by 20072.
The Office for National Statistics also publishes information on deaths (both suicide and by other means) where selected substances were mentioned on the death certificate. Intentional self-poisoning accounts for only around 30% of the total, with most the rest being accidental poisoning and mental/behavioural disorders due to drug use. Nevertheless, the figures do give a feel for what drugs people have taken to kill themselves. It should be noted that in around a third of deaths, more than one drug is mentioned on the death certificate, and in around a quarter, alcohol was mentioned along with one of the drugs.
Deaths where selected substances were mentioned on the death certificate 20083
|
|
No. |
% |
|
Class A drugs |
|
|
|
Heroin and morphine |
897 |
30.6% |
|
Methadone |
378 |
12.9% |
|
Cocaine |
235 |
8.0% |
|
|
|
|
|
Paracetamol |
|
|
|
Paracetamol |
242 |
8.3% |
|
Paracetamol not from compound |
147 |
5.0% |
|
Paracetamol and codeine compound |
56 |
1.9% |
|
Co-proxamol: Paracetamol & dextropropoxyphene compounda |
48 |
1.6% |
|
Paracetamol & dihydrocodeine compound |
12 |
0.4% |
|
|
|
|
|
Anti-depressants |
|
|
|
Amitriptyline (Tricyclic antidepressant) |
144 |
4.9% |
|
Dothiepin (Tricyclic antidepressant) |
61 |
2.1% |
|
Other Tricyclic antidepressants |
22 |
0.8% |
|
Selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors |
116 |
4.0% |
|
Monoamine-oxidase inhibitors |
1 |
0.0% |
|
Other antidepressants |
37 |
1.3% |
|
|
|
|
|
Insomnia medications |
|
|
|
Diazepam |
133 |
4.5% |
|
Temazepam |
37 |
1.3% |
|
Other benzodiazepines |
60 |
2.0% |
|
Zopiclone/zolpidem |
36 |
1.2% |
|
|
|
|
|
Pain relief |
|
|
|
Tramadol |
83 |
2.8% |
|
Dihydrocodeine |
79 |
2.7% |
|
Codeine |
70 |
2.4% |
|
|
|
|
|
Amphetamines |
|
|
|
MDMA/ecstasy |
44 |
1.5% |
|
Other amphetamines |
55 |
1.9% |
|
|
|
|
|
Others |
|
|
|
Gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB) |
20 |
0.7% |
|
Cannabis |
19 |
0.6% |
|
Aspirin |
15 |
0.5% |
|
Barbiturates |
13 |
0.4% |
|
Totalb |
3,060 |
|
NOTES
Figures are provisional
-
Figures include cases where dextropropoxyphene was mentioned without paracetamol as it is very rarely ingested except in combination with paracetamol.
-
In order to derive percentages for each method, some manipulation of the core data from the ONS had to be done, since some deaths may be counted in more than one category. For example, if heroin and cannabis are recorded on the death certificate, the death will be recorded once under heroin and once under cannabis. Therefore the numbers for each method do not actually add up to the total deaths from drug poisoning.
Sources
-
Office for National Statistics, Health Statistics Quarterly Winter 2003: UK Suicides 2001 by method, age and sex.
-
K Hawton, H Bergen, D Simkin, A Brock, C Griffiths, E Romeri, KL Smith, N Kapur, D Gunnell. (2009) Effect of withdrawal of co-proxamol on prescribing and deaths from drug poisoning in England and Wales: time series analysis. BMJ 2009;338;b2270; doi:10.1136/bmj.b2270.
-
Office for National Statistics, Health Statistics Quarterly 43 Autumn 2009, Deaths related to drug poisoning in England and Wales, 2008.