Notifications of intentional sel Notifications of intentionally self-inflicted injuries in adolescents residing in a state within the Legal Amazon region

Abstract

Self-injurious behavior includes injuries with and without suicidal intent and is an important predictor of suicide, making it a relevant public health problem, as suicide is one of the main causes of death among young people worldwide. The study aimed to analyze reported cases of self-injurious behavior among adolescents living in Mato Grosso between 2011 and 2020 and the completeness of the event notification forms. A descriptive study based on secondary data from the Notifiable Injuries Information System was conducted. A total of 1,421 reports of self-harm in adolescents (10 to 19 years old) were analyzed, extracted from the notification form for interpersonal and self-harm. A higher proportion of cases was observed among females (75%), in the 15 to 19 age group (75.4%), and among those with brown skin color/race (56.1%), with 88.8% occurring at home. Poisoning was the most common method (51.6%), followed by sharp objects (28.4%). Of the 40 fields, 47.5% were rated ‘excellent’, 20% ‘good’, 20% ‘regular’, and 12.5% ‘poor’, with most showing a steady trend. Providing visibility to non-fatal self-inflicted injuries and improving the quality of information are essential for implementing public policies to prevent these events.