Death due to hanging: a retrospective descriptive study of the socioeconomic and demographic profiles of hanging victims in central South Africa

Hanging by the neck is the leading method of suicide globally. The epidemiological risk factors for suicidal hanging can contribute to construct a socioeconomic and demographic profile of hanging victims. These profiles can then be used to identify individuals at the highest risk for committing suicide by hanging for referral to a suicide prevention program. The aim of this study was to describe the socioeconomic and demographic profiles of hanging victims in Bloemfontein, South Africa. A retrospective descriptive study was performed using data from the Bloemfontein Forensic Mortuary, for the period 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2015. In total, 9085 autopsies were performed during the study period; 355 (3.9%) were hanging victims. The median age of the victims was 31.4 (range 11–78) years, with 138 (38.9%) cases being 21–30 years of age. Three hundred and twenty-three (91.0%) of the victims were male, 227 (63.9%) were single, 201 (56.6%) were unemployed, and 129 (36.3%) completed their high school education. The most common location where the hanging occurred was at home. Single, unemployed males 21–40 years of age were found to have the highest risk for committing suicide by hanging. The group at the lowest risk were married and employed individuals older than 60 years, who had a tertiary education. We report the first socioeconomic and demographic profiles of individuals who commit suicide by hanging in central South Africa, emphasizing the need for a National Suicide Prevention Program via a multidisciplinary team approach.