@article{ref1,
title="Access to psychotropic medication via prescription is associated with choice of psychotropic medication as suicide method: a retrospective study of 27,876 suicide attempts",
journal="Journal of clinical psychiatry",
year="2018",
author="Brown, Talia L. and Gutierrez, Peter M. and Grunwald, Gary K. and DiGuiseppi, Carolyn and Valuck, Robert J. and Anderson, Heather D.",
volume="79",
number="6",
pages="e11982-e11982",
abstract="OBJECTIVE: Whether physical access to psychotropic medication via prescription (ie, prescribed access) is associated with use of psychotropic medication as a means of subsequent suicide attempt remains unclear. In a population of suicide attempters, we investigated whether prescribed access to any psychotropic medication increased the likelihood of using any psychotropic drug in a suicide attempt and whether prescribed access to a specific psychotropic drug type increased the likelihood of using that specific psychotropic drug type in an attempt. <br><br>METHODS: Case-control study design was used. We identified individuals receiving care for a suicide attempt (fatal or nonfatal) in emergency department and inpatient settings from a US insurance claims dataset (2006-2013) using relevant ICD-9-CM codes. Cases used a psychotropic drug in their suicide attempt, while controls used another method. Exposed individuals filled a psychotropic drug prescription within 90 days prior to the attempt. Multivariable logistic regression estimated odds ratios. <br><br>RESULTS: A population of 27,876 (cases = 10,158, controls = 17,718) was included. Anxiolytics were used most in attempts (n = 6,037, 59.4%), followed by antidepressants (n = 3,573, 35.2%), antipsychotics or mood stabilizers (n = 1,168, 11.5%), and stimulants (n = 368, 3.6%). Thirteen percent (n = 1,316) used more than 1 type of psychotropic drug in the attempt. Across all psychotropic drug groups evaluated, individuals using psychotropic medication in a suicide attempt were significantly more likely to have had prescribed access (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.7; 95% CI, 1.6-1.9), with the highest drug type-specific odds ratios for antipsychotics or mood stabilizers (aOR = 6.5; 95% CI, 5.4-7.7) and stimulants (aOR = 7.6; 95% CI, 5.5-10.5). <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: Individuals at high risk for suicide with prescribed access to any psychotropic medication should be targeted for means safety interventions.<br><br>© Copyright 2018 Physicians Postgraduate Press, Inc.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0160-6689",
doi="10.4088/JCP.17m11982",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.4088/JCP.17m11982"
}