Table 1 Description of legal handgun purchasers who died by firearm suicide or MVC, 1/1/2008–12/31/2013
Firearm suicide, N = 3862 | Motor vehicle crash, N = 1553 | |
|---|---|---|
No. (%) | No. (%) | |
Sociodemographic characteristics | ||
Age at death in years, mean (SD) | 56.0 (16.7) | 50.8 (15.8) |
Sex | ||
Female | 316 (8.2%) | 132 (8.5%) |
Male | 3546 (91.8%) | 1421 (91.5%) |
Education status | ||
High school or less | 1445 (37.4%) | 760 (48.9%) |
Some college | 941 (24.4%) | 401 (25.8%) |
Associates | 283 (7.3%) | 125 (8.0%) |
Bachelor | 703 (18.2%) | 155 (10.0%) |
Graduate | 408 (10.6%) | 90 (5.8%) |
Unknown | 82 (2.1%) | 22 (1.4%) |
Marital status | ||
Divorced | 960 (24.9%) | 307 (19.8%) |
Married/partner | 1580 (40.9%) | 771 (49.6%) |
Never married | 963 (24.9%) | 383 (24.7%) |
Widowed | 306 (7.9%) | 82 (5.3%) |
Unknown | 53 (1.4%) | 10 (0.6%) |
Rural–urban status | ||
Large metro | 2735 (70.8%) | 962 (61.9%) |
Small metro | 894 (23.1%) | 469 (30.2%) |
Rural | 233 (6.0%) | 122 (7.9%) |
Health conditionsa | ||
Any hospital visit | 1770 (45.8%) | 760 (48.9%) |
Suicidal ideation/attempt | 291 (7.5%) | 27 (1.7%) |
Suicidal ideation | 86 (2.2%) | 16 (1.0%) |
Suicide attempt | 223 (5.8%) | 15 (1.0%) |
Mental illness | 588 (15.2%) | 124 (8.0%) |
Depression | 398 (10.3%) | 70 (4.5%) |
Anxiety | 275 (7.1%) | 51 (3.3%) |
PTSD | 21 (0.5%) | 7 (0.5%) |
Bipolar | 82 (2.1%) | 28 (1.8%) |
Schizophrenia | 20 (0.5%) | 10 (0.6%) |
Substance use | 421 (10.9%) | 139 (9.0%) |
Alcohol use disorder/poisoning | 292 (7.6%) | 101 (6.5%) |
Drug use disorder/poisoning | 208 (5.4%) | 68 (4.4%) |
Opioid use disorder/poisoning | 70 (1.8%) | 20 (1.3%) |
Sedative/Hypnotic/Anxiolytic use disorder/poisoning | 55 (1.4%) | 14 (0.9%) |
Cannabis use disorder | 51 (1.3%) | 16 (1.0%) |
Stimulant use disorder/poisoning | 36 (0.9%) | 21 (1.4%) |
Physical illness | ||
Pain | 381 (9.9%) | 109 (7.0%) |
Rheumatoid Arthritis/Osteoarthritis | 205 (5.3%) | 63 (4.1%) |
Migraine/Chronic Headache | 47 (1.2%) | 9 (0.6%) |
Fibromyalgia/Chronic Pain/Fatigue | 213 (5.5%) | 52 (3.3%) |
Chronic disease | 971 (25.1%) | 338 (21.8%) |
Acute MI | 51 (1.3%) | 30 (1.9%) |
Heart failure | 150 (3.9%) | 59 (3.8%) |
Hypertension | 785 (20.3%) | 263 (16.9%) |
Stroke/Transient Ischemic Attack | 57 (1.5%) | 29 (1.9%) |
Asthma | 104 (2.7%) | 49 (3.2%) |
COPD | 204 (5.3%) | 62 (4.0%) |
Diabetes | 258 (6.7%) | 123 (7.9%) |
TBI | 9 (0.2%) | 10 (0.6%) |
Epilepsy | 31 (0.8%) | 26 (1.7%) |
Cancer | 135 (3.5%) | 20 (1.3%) |
Assault | 35 (0.9%) | 31 (2.0%) |