Suicide mortality among active employees enrolled in the agricultural insurance scheme between 2007 and 2013: description and comparison with the general population

Introduction: An excess of suicide mortality among agricultural workers has been observed in France and abroad. To our knowledge, no previous study has examined suicide mortality among agricultural workers affiliated with the Mutualité sociale agricole (MSA). The objectives of this study were to describe suicide mortality among active agricultural workers affiliated with the MSA between 2007 and 2013 and to compare it with that of the general French population. Method: The number of suicides among active MSA-affiliated employees during the 2007–2013 period was quantified. Their distribution by method was then described. Finally, suicide mortality among employees was compared to that of the general French population using standardized mortality ratios (SMR) for suicide. Results: The results show lower suicide mortality among active employees affiliated with the MSA compared to the general population: SMR = 0.81; 95% CI: [0.75–0.88] among men, and SMR = 0.46 [0.37–0.58] among women. Discussion and Conclusion: This lower mortality rate compared to the general population is commonly observed in occupational cohort studies. It is explained by a set of selection mechanisms collectively referred to as the healthy worker effect; however, this does not allow us to conclude that certain groups of these employees do not face an increased risk of suicide.

Author(s): Klingelschmidt Justine, Chastang Jean-François, Khireddine-Medouni Imane, Chérié-Challine Laurence, Niedhammer Isabell

Publishing year: 2018

Pages: 549-555

Weekly Epidemiological Bulletin, 2018, n° 27, p. 549-555

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