Smoking, psychosocial factors, psychopathologic behavior, and other related conditions in hospitalized youth suicide attempters.
BACKGROUND
Comorbidity of suicidal behavior with various risk factors has been reported. This study examines the combined effect and the interactions of the most prominent risk factors in hospitalized suicide attempters.


METHODS
Seventy-six successive hospitalized suicide attempters and 76 matched control subjects, 9 to 20 years old, were subjected to Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition Axis I and Axis II diagnoses and were interviewed for the use of licit and illicit substances. Also, 18 control subjects with the same psychiatric disorders diagnosed in the attempters were examined. Logistic regression analysis was applied to determine the independent effect of the risk factors to suicide attempts.


RESULTS
The findings showed an 18-fold greater frequency of psychiatric disorders, a 14-fold greater frequency of other conditions that may be a focus of clinical attention (mainly relational problems), a 9.7-fold greater frequency of smoking, and a 4.7-fold greater frequency of psychosocial and environmental problems in the attempters than in the control subjects. The independent association of these factors with increased suicide risk persisted after adjusting for the effect of other factors.


CONCLUSIONS
Psychopathologic behavior, psychosocial factors, and smoking are independently associated with increased risk for serious suicide attempts.
Menti
Ekaterini
E
Department of Psychiatry, University of Patras Medical School, 26504 Rion, Patras, Greece.
Lekka
Nikoletta P
NP
Assimakopoulos
Konstantinos
K
Varvarigou
Anastasia
A
Beratis
Nicholas G
NG
Beratis
Stavroula
S
D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003069:Coffee; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005195:Family Relations; D005260:Female; D006115:Greece / Q000453:epidemiology; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D007406:Interview, Psychological; D008297:Male; D002189:Marijuana Abuse / Q000453:epidemiology; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology; D011446:Prospective Studies; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013406:Suicide, Attempted / Q000523:psychology*
D003069:Coffee