Suicide risk on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Day, and Valentine's Day: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Holidays are times of celebration of family and loved ones which can be difficult for some people. This study assessed the risk of suicide on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Day, and Valentine's Day.

Methods

We searched four major electronic databases. The primary outcome was suicide deaths, and the secondary outcome was self-harm and suicide-related behaviors (SHSB). For each holiday, we calculated the risk ratio (RR) compared to regular days and the proportion of annual suicides.

Results

We included 28 studies (n = 2,186,094). The proportion of annual suicides was 0.23% [95% confidence interval, 0.17%, 0.28%; number of studies (k) = 11] on Christmas Eve, 0.24% (0.19%, 0.29%; k = 17) on Christmas Day, 0.39% (0.31%, 048%; k = 16) on New Year'

SUBMITTER: Yeh TC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12518309 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature