Citation

Bolton JM, Cox BJ, Afifi TO, Enns MW, Bienvenu OJ, Sareen J. Depress. Anxiety 2007; 25(6): 477-481.

Affiliation

Department of Psychiatry, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2007, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1002/da.20314

PMID

17541978

Abstract

Our objective was to determine whether the presence of an anxiety disorder was a risk factor for future suicide attempts. Data were drawn from the 13-year follow-up Baltimore Epidemiological Catchment Area survey (n= 1,920). Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to determine the association between baseline anxiety disorders (social phobia, simple phobia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic attacks, or agoraphobia) and subsequent onset suicide attempts. The presence of one or more anxiety disorders at baseline was significantly associated with subsequent onset suicide attempts (adjusted odds ratio 2.20, 95% confidence interval 1.04-4.64) after controlling for sociodemographic variables and all baseline mental disorders assessed in the survey. These findings suggest that anxiety disorders are independent risk factors for suicide attempts, and underscore the importance of anxiety disorders as a serious public health problem.