Germany reports worrying increase in number of attempted suicides among children

Attempted suicides by children and adolescents tripled during the second lockdown, according to research by the University of Hesse, Report informs, citing foreign media.

Data from 27 Pediatric Intensive Care Units across Germany were studied.

“We had about 500 cases from mid-March to the end of May 2021, which is about three times more than in the corresponding period of 2017, 2018 and 2019,” said researcher, pediatrician and intensivist Christian Dona-Swake, speaking to Bild newspaper. “Not all suicide attempts in this age group end in ICU, as they are usually done with pills.”

He also said that in children and adolescents, about 5% of cases end in death, however many cases are prevented.

Mr Donna-Svanke explained that the reason for the investigation was the increase in cases at his own clinic, already during the first lockdown. Anxious, he had contacted colleagues at other Children’s ICUs, and so began the study of the side effects of the pandemic on children and adolescents.

In a similar study, the head of the Clemens August Pediatric Clinic in Lower Saxony, Andreas Roberg, had recently pointed out that the lockdown is the catalyst for psychological problems (and) in children.

“We are already seeing that the psychological burden on children and young people is particularly great. “Those who are affected usually suffer from, among other things, severe depression or phobias,” Roberg told Bild last October, stressing that he expects a future increase in the number of mentally ill children and adolescents.