Suicide and mental illness in parents and risk of suicide in offspring: a birth cohort study.
BACKGROUND
A family history of completed suicide and psychiatric illness has been identified as risk factors for suicide.


OBJECTIVE
To examine the risk of offspring suicide in relation to parental history of suicide and other parental risk factors.


METHODS
The study population consisted of 7,177 adult offspring born 1959-1961 and their parents from the Copenhagen Perinatal Cohort. Cohort members and their parents who had committed suicide were identified in the Danish Causes of Death Registry (follow-up until December 31, 2005), while information on psychiatric hospitalisation history was obtained from the Danish Psychiatric Central Research Register.


RESULTS
Forty-eight cohort members, 77 mothers and 133 fathers had committed suicide during the follow-up. Independent of parental psychiatric illness and social status, parental suicide significantly increased suicide risk in offspring (hazard ratio 4.40 with 95% CI 1.81-10.69). A stronger effect of parental suicide was observed in offspring without a history of psychiatric hospitalisation.


CONCLUSIONS
Parental history of suicide is a risk factor for suicide in offspring, but primarily in offspring without psychiatric hospitalisation.
Sørensen
Holger J
HJ
Institute of Preventive Medicine, Danish Epidemiology Science Center, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Mortensen
Erik L
EL
Wang
August G
AG
Juel
Knud
K
Silverton
Leigh
L
Mednick
Sarnoff A
SA
D000328:Adult; D032721:Adult Children / Q000523:psychology*; D002423:Cause of Death; D002648:Child; D016241:Child of Impaired Parents / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003718:Denmark / Q000453:epidemiology; D005220:Fathers / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006778:Hospitals, Psychiatric; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012042:Registries / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D013405:Suicide / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*