Citation

Beristianos MH, Maguen S, Neylan TC, Byers AL. Am. J. Geriatr. Psychiatry 2016; 24(8): 639-643.

Affiliation

Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center, San Francisco, CA, USA. Electronic address: amy.byers@ucsf.edu.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2016, American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry, Publisher Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.jagp.2016.02.055

PMID

27067069

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To determine if trauma exposure is associated with suicidal ideation in a nationally representative sample of older adults.

METHODS: This study included 3,277 participants 55 years and older involved in the Collaborate Psychiatric Epidemiology Surveys (2001-2003).

RESULTS: Of the 84.8% of older adults who were exposed to any trauma, 2.2% endorsed late-life suicidal ideation. Multivariable models fully adjusted for sociodemographics, post-traumatic stress disorder, major depressive disorder, and substance use revealed exposure to serious accidents/illness was associated with suicidal ideation (odds ratio: 2.55; 95% confidence interval: 1.16-5.59; Wald χ(2) = 5.47, df = 1, p = 0.019). Investigation of specific traumas within the category revealed that life-threatening illness was specifically associated with suicidal ideation in older adults (odds ratio: 2.12; 95% confidence interval: 1.34-3.36; Wald χ(2) = 10.33, df = 1, p = 0.001).

CONCLUSION: These findings highlight the need for monitoring of suicidal ideation among older adults who have been informed of a life-threatening illness diagnosis.

Published by Elsevier Inc.

Language: en