title: Assessment of suicidality in children and adolescents with diagnosis of high functioning autism spectrum disorder in a Turkish clinical sample.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Considering that suicide is one of the most common reasons of adolescent death worldwide, there is a lack of clinical awareness on suicidal behaviors of children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The present study aims to assess the rate of suicidality (suicidal ideation, behaviors and attempts) and associated risk factors for suicidality in high functioning ASD.
  
  
  METHODS
  Medical records of 55 adolescents (six girls, 49 boys), aged between 7-20 years, with diagnosis of ASD were reviewed. The participants were all able to speak fluently and had no significant limitations in intellectual functioning. Clinical assessment of participants was carried out on the basis ofDiagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders4th Edition, Text Revision criteria and Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children-Present and Lifetime Version. Eskin's Suicide Screening Questionnaire and sociodemographic data form including detailed history of suicidal behaviors were used. The study group was also divided into suicidal and non-suicidal groups for the purpose of comparing the results.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The rate of suicidal behaviors was 29% and suicide attempt was 12.7%. Types of suicidality were behaviors (43.7%), thoughts (37.5%), and verbal declarations (18.7%). A number of bizarre acts were recorded. Rates of comorbid psychiatric disorders such as mood disorders, anxiety disorders and disruptive behaviors were 23.6%, 43.6% and 65.4% respectively. Groups with the psychotic features, positive family history for suicidal behaviors and completed suicide showed more suicidality than the non-suicidal group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Consistent with the previous findings, rate of suicidality is higher in individuals with ASD. The type of suicidal behaviors showed some differences compared to typically developing individuals. The presence of psychotic features and positive family history for suicidality may be risk factors for suicidality in children and adolescents with ASD. To prevent suicide and implement protective health care systems, identifying the population at risk is crucial.
authors.affiliation: Department of Child Psychiatry, Adnan Menderes University School of Medicine, Aydin.
authors.forename: Sevcan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Karakoç Demirkaya
authors.affiliation: Department of Child Psychiatry, Istanbul School of Medicine, Istanbul University, Istanbul.
authors.forename: Mustafa Deniz
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Tutkunkardaş
authors.affiliation: Istanbul Institute of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Nahit Motavalli
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Mukaddes
keywords: adolescent; autism; child; suicidal attempt; suicidal ideation