Key Points

In Réunion, as in France as a whole, a trend toward worsening indicators related to suicidal behavior was observed during the pandemic.

• Emergency department activity: the increase in activity due to suicidal ideation was significant only among young women aged 11 to 24. Young women accounted for the majority of visits for suicidal ideation before the crisis and continued to do so through 2021. Regarding suicide attempts, no significant change was observed (numbers are low) despite trends mirroring those of the country as a whole.

• Hospitalizations for suicide attempts: Unlike most regions, hospitalization rates for suicide attempts (all genders) continued to rise through 2015, reaching the national average for women and exceeding it for men. From 2016 through 2019, the hospitalization rate for suicide attempts began a gradual decline among women, falling below the national average, and stabilized around the national average among men.After an increase in 2020, the hospitalization rate for suicide attempts declined in 2021 in Réunion, but remained higher than the rate for the pre-pandemic period. The decline was observed only among men, while the rate remained stable among women between 2020 and 2021 and higher than during the 2017–2019 period. The hospitalization rate for suicide attempts in Réunion is lower than the national average but higher than in the other DROMs and in three metropolitan regions.

• Suicide mortality: was declining over the 2010–2017 period (latest consolidated data available) and, as in the other overseas departments and regions (DROMs), was lower than in metropolitan France. Suicide mortality was higher among men than among women (a ratio of 4 to 1). Unlike in mainland France, mortality was highest among men aged 40 to 49. Furthermore, unlike in mainland France, mortality among those aged 75 and older was very low. As elsewhere, suicide by hanging was the most common method, but in Réunion, it was followed by suicide by jumping (the second leading cause among men and the third among women).