Palestinian Medical and Pharmaceutical Journal (Pal. Med. Pharm. J.)

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Palestinian Medical and Pharmaceutical Journal (Pal. Med. Pharm. J.) Indexed in Scopus since 2022
CiteScore 1.0
Indexed since 2022
First decision 7 Days
Submission to acceptance 45 Days
Acceptance to publication 14 Days
Acceptance rate 8%

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Palestinian Medical and Pharmaceutical Journal (Pal. Med. Pharm. J.) Open directory record
Original full research article

Determination of the cause and the manner of death in post-mortem cases in the West Bank in the years 2011-2021

Published
2022-05-15
Pages
255 - 268
Full text

Keywords

  • Palestinian
  • Post-Mortem
  • Examination;
  • Toxicity;
  • Drug
  • Intoxication;
  • Autopsy
  • Homicide;
  • Suicide;
  • Refugees;

Abstract

A post-mortem examination is a reliable method to reveal possible hidden causes of death. However, due to the stigma associated with drug use, mortality data related to drug use is a neglected topic in local health in Palestine. Therefore, we aimed to describe post-mortem examination cases' mortality data and investigate the occurrence of death-related drug use in the West Bank in a retrospective study, 2011-2021. Homicide was more prevalent among males (32.9%) than females (20.9%), with increased risk in young adults (OR=2.8) and the summer season (OR=1.9). Moreover, Palestinian refugees were three times more likely to commit homicide than urban (OR=30.3). Most suicide cases were males and with increased risk in children (OR=4.9) and young adults (OR=8.7) than age group>40 years (p-value<0.05). In mortality data related to intoxication, organophosphates were the leading cause of death in suicidal cases and multidrug misuse in unintentional death. Amphetamines were the most drugs found in combination with other drugs. Most of the deaths related to drug use were male prominent and from villages. In conclusion, age-related increases in homicide and suicide rates highlighted the vital role of raising national health awareness and improving the health care system in rural areas and refugee camps. Moreover, the increased percentages of suicide and accidental death related to drug use, the age of victims, and the polydrug tested in these cases indicate a hidden population of multidrug users in young Palestinian adults and children, which designates drug use in Palestine has reached an alarming situation.

Article history

Received
2022-03-10
Accepted
2022-05-15
بحث أصيل كامل

Determination of the cause and the manner of death in post-mortem cases in the West Bank in the years 2011-2021

Published
2022-05-15
الصفحات
255 - 268
البحث كاملا

الكلمات الإفتتاحية

  • Palestinian
  • Post-Mortem
  • Examination;
  • Toxicity;
  • Drug
  • Intoxication;
  • Autopsy
  • Homicide;
  • Suicide;
  • Refugees;

الملخص

A post-mortem examination is a reliable method to reveal possible hidden causes of death. However, due to the stigma associated with drug use, mortality data related to drug use is a neglected topic in local health in Palestine. Therefore, we aimed to describe post-mortem examination cases' mortality data and investigate the occurrence of death-related drug use in the West Bank in a retrospective study, 2011-2021. Homicide was more prevalent among males (32.9%) than females (20.9%), with increased risk in young adults (OR=2.8) and the summer season (OR=1.9). Moreover, Palestinian refugees were three times more likely to commit homicide than urban (OR=30.3). Most suicide cases were males and with increased risk in children (OR=4.9) and young adults (OR=8.7) than age group>40 years (p-value<0.05). In mortality data related to intoxication, organophosphates were the leading cause of death in suicidal cases and multidrug misuse in unintentional death. Amphetamines were the most drugs found in combination with other drugs. Most of the deaths related to drug use were male prominent and from villages. In conclusion, age-related increases in homicide and suicide rates highlighted the vital role of raising national health awareness and improving the health care system in rural areas and refugee camps. Moreover, the increased percentages of suicide and accidental death related to drug use, the age of victims, and the polydrug tested in these cases indicate a hidden population of multidrug users in young Palestinian adults and children, which designates drug use in Palestine has reached an alarming situation.

Article history

تاريخ التسليم
2022-03-10
تاريخ القبول
2022-05-15