Biomed Pap Med Fac Univ Palacky Olomouc Czech Repub. X:X | DOI: 10.5507/bp.2026.003

Suicide mapping: Case study on Olomouc and Zlín regions in Czech Republic in 2018-2022

Veronika Kralikova1, Alena Vondrakova2, Tomas Kralik2, Karel Macku2, Václav Svrchokryl1, Adriana Gavronova1, Lukas Hamerlik1
1 Institute of Forensic Medicine and Medical Law, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Palacky University Olomouc, Olomouc, Czech Republic
2 Department of Geoinformatics, Faculty of Science, Palacky University Olomouc, Olomouc, Czech Republic

Background and Aims: Suicide represents a major public health issue influenced by a complex interplay of individual, social, and environmental factors. While suicidological research traditionally focuses on psychological and clinical aspects, spatial dimensions of suicidal behavior remain less explored, particularly in Central Europe. This study presents a geospatial analysis of completed suicides in the Olomouc and Zlín Regions of the Czech Republic between 2018 and 2022, using a unique dataset derived from forensic autopsy records. The primary goal was to demonstrate the potential of spatial processing and interdisciplinary collaboration between forensic medicine and geoinformatics in identifying contextual patterns of suicidal behavior.

Methods: A dataset of 585 completed suicides was compiled from forensic autopsy reports, including detailed individual-level characteristics and geolocation data. Spatial analyses were conducted using GIS software, integrating additional layers such as land use, demographic and socioeconomic indicators, and quality of life indices. Both point-level and aggregated data (municipality and administrative district levels) were used to explore correlations and spatial variability.

Results: The study confirmed known trends - such as male predominance and the role of alcohol - and identified new spatial relationships, including a negative correlation between blood alcohol concentration and latitude, and between age and distance from residence to suicide location. Spatial analyses were conducted at multiple levels of aggregation and combined with selected socioeconomic and environmental indicators, including quality of life, urban-rural context, and foreclosure (enforcement) rates. The results demonstrate that spatial patterns and correlations between suicide rates and area-based characteristics vary depending on the spatial scale of analysis.

Conclusion: The findings illustrate the potential of interdisciplinary collaboration between forensic medicine and geoinformatics and provide an exploratory basis for further research and more context-sensitive suicide prevention approaches.

Keywords: suicide, database, spatial context, spatial characteristics, GIS, geovisualization, forensic data, Czech Republic

Received: November 4, 2025; Revised: January 23, 2026; Accepted: January 27, 2026; Prepublished online: March 19, 2026 

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