Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to S Simkin.
A lower incidence of attempted suicide was found for Oxford University students than for other persons of the same age in Oxford City. This may be due to social class differences. Characteristics of the student attempters are reported. On the other hand, the rates for completed suicides of students, over a recent ten-year period, were in excess of those for the rest of their age group.
This study investigates the reasons people give for taking overdoses of drugs. A representative sample of 128 subjects were interviewed immediately after their recovery from an overdose. During the interview they were given alternative reasons for taking overdoses and asked to choose any that applied to them. Spontaneous comments about suicidal intent were also recorded. Of the subjects, 44% indicated that they had wanted to die. On the basis of their choices 33% were 'seeking help', 42% 'escaping from the situation', 52% 'obtaining relief from a terrible state of mind' and 19% 'trying to influence someone'. The association between these various reasons and other expected effects or feelings associated with the act were examined by means of multidimensional scaling analysis. In addition, the characteristics of those expressing suicidal intent and other reasons were studied, together with such consequences as toxic effects and psychiatric after-care. The possibility is discussed that a large proportion of those indicating suicidal intent do so either to gain social acceptability for their act or to influence helping agencies.
A prospective study of self-poisoning and self-injury in the Oxford area for 1972-73 and a retrospective study for 1969 has shown the following: (a) The number of admissions to a general hospital following self-poisoning and self-injury has increased by approximately 45% in 3 1/2 years. The increase is more marked in women than in men. (b) When compared with a previous study the incidence in Oxford city has quadrupled in ten years. (c) A total of 74% of men and 67% of women, aged 16 years and over, harming themselves in this way are under the age of 35 years. The repetitiveness is increasing and the proportion of those repeating the attempt was 10% within three months, and 15% within six months. (d) The rates are exceptionally high for teenage wives and single, widowed, and divorced women aged between 24-35 years. Single men show exceptionally high rates in the 35-45 year age group. (e) With the exception of married women aged between 25 and 34 years and women over 60, the rates were higher in urban than in rural areas. (f) In men the rates were higher among personal service workers, semi-skilled manual and unskilled manual workers. In women the rates were highest among non-manual, ancillary to professional (especially nurses), and semi-skilled manual workers. Male students had rates much lower than those of their age group, while female students had rates about the same as their age group. The lowest rates were among professional and 'own account' workers.
The Harrington rod procedure for the surgical correction of scoliosis may be safely applied only if the spreader is instrumented with a force indicator. A method is described here of providing the surgeon with simple and direct means of controlling the force exerted with the spreader, using a photoelastic transducer with a special device for temperature compensation which is built into the spreader.