Citation

McCarthy JF, Ilgen MA, Austin K, Blow FC, Katz IR. Obesity (Silver Spring) 2014; 22(1): 269-276.

Affiliation

US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Mental Health Operations (OMHO); VA OMHO Serious Mental Illness Treatment Resource and Evaluation Center; VA Center for Clinical Management Research; University of Michigan Department of Psychiatry. John.McCarthy2@va.gov.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2014, Wiley-Blackwell)

DOI

10.1002/oby.20422

PMID

23512622

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: We evaluate associations between Body Mass Index (BMI) and suicide risks and methods for individuals receiving care in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) health system. DESIGN AND METHODS: For 4,005,640 patients in fiscal years 2001-2002, multivariable survival analyses assessed associations between BMI and suicide, through FY2009. Covariates included demographics, psychiatric and non-psychiatric diagnoses, receipt of VHA mental health encounters, and regional network. Among suicide decedents, multivariable Generalized Estimating Equations regression examined associations between BMI and suicide method. RESULTS: 1.3% of patients were underweight, 24.3% normal weight, 40.6% overweight, and 33.8% obese. Underweight was associated with increased suicide risk (adjusted hazard ratio [AHR]=1.17, 95% CI: 1.01, 1.36) compared to normal. Overweight and obese status were associated with lower risk (AHR=0.78, 95% CI: 0.74, 0.82; AHR=0.63, 95% CI: 0.60, 0.66, respectively). Among suicide decedents, high lethality methods were most common among underweight and least common among obese individuals. Adjusting for covariates, BMI was not associated with method lethality, yet some associations were observed between BMI and specific methods. CONCLUSIONS: Among VHA patients, BMI was negatively associated with suicide risks. These differences may partly relate to choice of suicide method. Low BMI offers an additional resource for clinical suicide risk assessments.

Language: en