Nation IN BRIEF : NEW YORK : Elderly’s Suicide Rate Jumps by 21%

The suicide rate for older Americans jumped 21% between 1980 and 1986, a study found. The increases followed a drop in suicides by older Americans between 1950 and 1980, researchers said. Reasons for the new trend are not clear, although increases in social isolation and longer lives with chronic illness may have played some role, said study co-author Dr. Richard Sattin of the federal Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta. The study appears in this month’s American Journal of Public Health, published in New York.