Women Veterans with substance abuse have more suicide risk than men
VA Research News Briefs

Photo: ©iStock/Tharakorn
(03/26/2025)
VA Boston researchers and their colleagues learned Women Veterans with alcohol use disorder (AUD) or opioid use disorder (OUD) were more than twice as likely to die of suicide as men with these conditions. Furthermore, their deaths occurred at a younger age – in an analysis of nearly 120,000 deaths of Veterans diagnosed with AUD or OUD, women died at an average age of 48 years old, compared to 53 years old for men. Women were 2.08 times more likely than men to die by poisoning, while men were 1.73 times more likely than women to die by firearms. The findings highlight an urgent need for suicide risk assessment and prevention among Women Veterans with substance use disorder. (Women's Health Issues, Mar. 19, 2025)