Suicidal ideation and aggressiveness in school-aged youths.

This study set out to explore the frequency and correlates of suicidal ideation in a community sample of school-aged adolescents living in a northeastern area of Italy. The study involved a mixed male-female sample of 1,000 adolescents, corresponding to 10% of the young population aged 15-19 in the district. We investigated psychological distress through the revised Symptom Checklist (SCL-90-R), from which we also derived our indicators on suicidality (items concerning hopelessness and suicidal ideation). Propensity to aggression was measured with an Italian version of the Aggression Questionnaire. Females scored significantly higher than males on all SCL-90-R subscales, with the exception of the hostility subscale. In our sample, 30.8% of females and 25.3% of males reported having thought about suicide; one adolescent out of 20 reported suicidal ideation of high intensity (5% out of the total sample in both genders). Males scored significantly higher than females on the Aggression Questionnaire. Both males and females who reported suicidal feelings had significantly higher scores on the Aggression Questionnaire than did those who denied suicidal ideation. Suicidal ideation is a rather widespread occurrence among adolescents and correlates with other indicators of psychological distress. Psychological distress in adolescence might also be expressed through turbulent behaviors and conduct disorders. Identification of the mental disorders underlying a higher propensity to aggression might help to prevent other negative outcomes such as suicide.

Eating disorders and suicide risk factors in adolescents: an Italian community-based study.

In a mixed male-female sample of 1000 adolescents age 15 to 19 years in a northeastern area of Italy, we investigated the links between eating disorders and suicidal tendencies by means of self-compiled measures, including the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT), the Bulimic Investigatory Test of Edinburgh (BITE), the Body Attitudes Test (BAT), and the SCL-90-R. More females than males reported abnormal eating patterns suggesting eating disorders: we found that 100 females (15.8%) and 8 males (2.8%) achieved scores above the suggested cutoff on EAT (cutoff = 30), 26 females (4.1%) and 1 male (.3%) achieved scores above the suggested cutoff on BITE (cutoff = 20), and 287 females (45.5%) and 24 males (8.6%) achieved scores above the suggested cutoff on BAT (cutoff = 36). More females than males also reported symptoms of hopelessness (44.3% vs. 30.5%) and suicidal ideation (30.8% vs. 25.3%). Both males and females reporting suicidal ideation achieved significantly higher scores on the eating disorders inventories, with no independent contribution by age, socioeconomic status, or body mass index. Although caution is required when drawing conclusions from self-reported measures, studies on mood disorders and suicidality in youth clearly need to include measures of eating disorders.

The spectrum of eating disorders: prevalence in an area of Northeast Italy.

This study aims at exploring the prevalence of eating disorders in a sample of adolescents living in a community in Northeast Italy. It takes into account age and gender differences in a mixed male-female sample of 1000 school-aged adolescents corresponding to 10% of the young population aged 15-19 years of the district. The study was based on self-reported questionnaires, including the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT), the Bulimic Investigatory Test of Edinburgh (BITE), and the Body Attitudes Test (BAT). The cases at risk were identified on the basis of the suggested validated cutoff for a clinically relevant syndrome. Females scored higher than males at all ages, body mass index levels, and socio-economic status levels. We found 100 females (15.8%) and 8 males (2.8%) scoring higher than the suggested cutoff for caseness on the EAT (cutoff=30); 26 females (4.1%) and 1 male (0.3%) scoring higher than the suggested cutoff for caseness on the BITE (cutoff=20); 287 females (45.5%) and 24 males (8.6%) scoring higher than the suggested cutoff for caseness on the BAT (cutoff=36). We did not find any gradient between age and socioeconomic status and the scores on the eating disorder inventories. BAT scores predicted with sharp precision the presence of an abnormal psychometric pattern on the EAT and the BITE. The prevalence of psychometric patterns that indicate an eating disorder seems in our adolescent sample higher than those reported in previous similar studies carried out in the North of Italy. The use of self-report inventories is a limitation in drawing definitive conclusions on the rates of eating disorder in this area; however, bodily dissatisfaction seems to be psychologically linked to abnormal eating patterns.