Suicides from 2016 to 2020 in Finland and the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had negative mental health outcomes in populations, but the suicide numbers in Finland have remained unchanged compared with expected levels based on the pre-pandemic period. We included all deaths from suicide verified by the official cause-of-death investigations, including forensic autopsy with analysis of forensic toxicology samples, between 1 January 2016 and 31 December 2020 in Finland. There was a decline in suicide incidence from 2016 to 2020 in men, and a declining tendency in suicide rates for every consecutive month during the COVID-19 pandemic period. The COVID-19 governmental policy responses do not seem to have led to an increase in suicide numbers.

Neuropathology consultation rates in medico-legal autopsies show substantial within-country variation-a nationwide Finnish study.

Neuropathology consultations are an essential part of medico-legal cause-of-death investigations. However, there are little data on the rates of neuropathological examinations in medico-legal autopsies. The present nationwide, retrospective, register-based study aimed to report and compare neuropathology consultation rates (i.e. the percentages of medico-legal autopsies with a neuropathology consultation) in five Finnish regions from 2016 to 2021. The dataset comprised 50 457 medico-legal autopsies with 1 274 neuropathology consultations. Overall, ~1 in 40 autopsies (2.5%) involved a neuropathology consultation. Consultation rates were lowest in the Southern Finland region (1.4%) and highest in the Southwestern Finland and Åland region (6.5%). Throughout the study period, the consultation rates of Southwestern Finland and Åland were 1.5 to 9.4 times those of other regions (P < 0.001). In conclusion, this nationwide Finnish study identified substantial differences in neuropathology consultation rates between regions, which may indicate regional differences in conventions and policies. However, the "optimal" consultation rate remains unknown. Future studies are required to further understand the differences in autopsy practices within the Finnish context as well as in medico-legal institutions elsewhere. Key points: There are little data on the rates of neuropathology consultations in medico-legal autopsies.This Finnish study characterized regional differences in neuropathology consultation rates between 2016 and 2021.Overall, 1 in 40 autopsies (2.5%) involved a neuropathology consultation.The consultation rates of Southwestern Finland and Åland were 1.5 to 9.4 times those of other regions.Our findings may reflect regional differences in conventions and policies.