Rates of reported self-harm among young teenaged girls have increased substantially this decade, researchers warn today.
An analysis of practice records by Manchester University found that by 2014 the proportion of girls aged 13 to 16 involved in self harm was approaching 1%.
Researchers say the findings are concerning – but also show the potential for early intervention through general practices.
The analysis found that in 2011, the rate among this age group was 45.9 cases per 10,000 – and three years later it reached 77 per 10,000.
The researchers found that self-harm was three times as likely among girls as among boys.
The analysis involved nearly 17,000 reports of self-harm in patients aged between ten and 19 in 674 practices.
The study, reported in The BMJ, found that these children were nine times as likely as others of the same age group to die unnaturally.
Researcher Professor Nav Kapur, a psychiatrist, said: “Though the higher rates of self-harm in girls than boys and a strong link with the risk of later suicide has confirmed previous work, perhaps our most striking finding was the apparent rapid increase in self-harm recorded for girls aged 13-16.
“Of course we need to bear in mind the weaknesses of our study – we used routine general practice data and some episodes of self-harm might have been missed. And the level of detail for things like method of self-harm was limited.
“But these results do emphasise the opportunity for earlier intervention in primary care to reduce suicide risk. We know talking treatments can help.”
He added: “There is also a need for more integrated care involving families, schools and health and social care providers and the voluntary sector to enhance safety among these distressed young people and to help secure their future mental health and wellbeing.”
Incidence, clinical management, and mortality risk following self-harm among children and adolescents: cohort study in primary care BMJ 19 October 2017 [abstract]
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