Citation

Prabhakar D, Peterson EL, Hu Y, Chawa S, Rossom RC, Lynch FL, Lu CY, Waitzfelder BE, Owen-Smith AA, Williams LK, Beck A, Simon GE, Ahmedani BK. Crisis 2020; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, International Association for Suicide Prevention, Publisher Hogrefe Publishing)

DOI

10.1027/0227-5910/a000729

PMID

33151092

Abstract

BACKGROUND: In the US, more than one million people attempt suicide each year. History of suicide attempt is a significant risk factor for death by suicide; however, there is a paucity of data from the US general population on this relationship.

AIM: The objective of this study was to examine suicide attempts needing medical attention as a risk for suicide death.

METHOD: We conducted a case-control study involving eight US healthcare systems. A total of 2,674 individuals who died by suicide from 2000 to 2013 were matched to 267,400 individuals by year and location.

RESULTS: Prior suicide attempt associated with a medical visit increases risk for suicide death by 39.1 times, particularly for women (OR = 79.2). However, only 11.3% of suicide deaths were associated with an attempt that required medical attention. The association was the strongest for children 10-14 years old (OR = 98.0). Most suicide attempts were recorded during the 20-week period prior to death. Limitations: Our study is limited to suicide attempts for which individuals sought medical care.

CONCLUSION: In the US, prior suicide attempt is associated with an increased risk of suicide death; the risk is high especially during the period immediately following a nonlethal attempt.

Language: en

Keywords

serious suicide attempts; suicide death