title: Severe pain predicts greater likelihood of subsequent suicide.
abstract: Using data from the 1999 Large Health Survey of Veterans, Veterans Affairs' medical records, and the National Death Index (N = 260,254), the association between self-reported pain severity and suicide among veterans as examined, after accounting for demographic variables and psychiatric diagnoses. A Cox proportional hazards regression demonstrated that veterans with severe pain were more likely to die by suicide than patients experiencing none, mild, or moderate pain (HR: 1.33; 95% CI: 1.15, 1.54), after controlling for demographic and psychiatric characteristics. These results indicate that pain evaluations should be included in comprehensive suicide assessments and suicide prevention efforts.
authors.affiliation: VA Serious Mental Illness Treatment Research and Evaluation Center, Ann Arbor, MI, USA. marki@umich.edu
authors.forename: Mark A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Ilgen
authors.forename: Kara
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Zivin
authors.forename: Karen L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Austin
authors.forename: Amy S B
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Bohnert
authors.forename: Ewa K
authors.initials: EK
authors.lastname: Czyz
authors.forename: Marcia
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Valenstein
authors.forename: Amy M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Kilbourne
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010146:Pain / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology*; D010147:Pain Measurement; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D013405:Suicide / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D014728:Veterans / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D055815:Young Adult