title: Causes of Death in an Acute Psychiatric Inpatient Unit of a Portuguese General Hospital.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Psychiatric patients are at increased risk of death from a number of natural and unnatural causes. This study examines the mortality causes of all psychiatric inpatients of an acute psychiatric unit at a general hospital in Portugal for sixteen years (1998 to 2013).
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty-one inpatients died at the inpatient unit between 1998 and 2013 (average 1.3 per year). A retrospective study through case-file review was carried to collect demographic characteristics, medical and psychiatry diagnosis. Patients transferred to other wards during their admission were not included.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Circulatory system diseases were the most prevalent causes of death, occurring in 2/3 of patients and include pulmonary embolism (n = 6), acute stroke (n = 3), cardiac arrhythmia (n = 2), acute myocardial infarction (n = 1), abdominal aortic aneurysm rupture (n = 1) and heart failure (n = 1). Two patients died with pneumonia and in four cases the cause of death was undetermined. Only one case of suicide was registered.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Circulatory conditions were the most frequent causes of death in our inpatient unit. Albeit a relatively rare event, inpatient suicide does occur and, in addition to its complex consequences on staff, family and patients should remain a focus for continued prevention.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Mortality studies are important for determining quality of health care and to create recommendations for preventive measures.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry. Hospital Prof. Doutor Fernando Fonseca. Amadora. Portugal.
authors.forename: Sofia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Barbosa
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry. Hospital Prof. Doutor Fernando Fonseca. Amadora. Portugal.
authors.forename: Márcia
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sequeira
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry. Hospital Prof. Doutor Fernando Fonseca. Amadora. Portugal.
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Castro
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology and Anatomical Sciences. Hospital Prof. Doutor Fernando Fonseca. Amadora. Portugal.
authors.forename: Rita
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Manso
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry. Hospital Prof. Doutor Fernando Fonseca. Amadora. Portugal.
authors.forename: Catarina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Klut Câmara
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry. Hospital Prof. Doutor Fernando Fonseca. Amadora. Portugal. Department of Mental Health. NOVA Medical School. Universidade Nova de Lisboa. Lisbon. Portugal.
authors.forename: Bruno
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Trancas
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry. Hospital Prof. Doutor Fernando Fonseca. Amadora. Portugal.
authors.forename: Nuno
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Borja-Santos
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry. Hospital Prof. Doutor Fernando Fonseca. Amadora. Portugal.
authors.forename: Teresa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Maia
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002423:Cause of Death; D005260:Female; D017052:Hospital Mortality; D006757:Hospital Units; D006769:Hospitals, General; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011174:Portugal; D011567:Psychiatric Department, Hospital; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D055815:Young Adult