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David A. Brent, MD
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic Pittsburgh, Pa

Joshua A. Perper, MD, LLB, MSc
Chief Coroner, Allegheny County Pittsburgh, Pa

JAMA. 1992;267(22):3026-3027.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

In Reply.

—Dr Blackman raises concerns about the size of the study as limiting the ability to draw firm conclusions. However, this study is a replication of a previously published comparison of 27 suicides and 56 suicidal adolescents.¹ The fact that both studies yielded the same results strengthens the ability to draw the conclusion that the availability of firearms is a risk factor for adolescent suicide.

Blackman raises an interesting hypothesis, "that household gun ownership is positively associated with mental health in teenagers." I am not sure if Blackman is suggesting that there are salutary properties associated with firearm ownership, or whether those families with psychiatrically ill adolescents are less likely to have a gun available in the home. Both the suicide victims and suicide attempters were psychiatrically ill, but the rate of firearm ownership was higher in families of suicide victims, suggesting that there is no relationship between . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

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