Factors associated with transitioning from suicidal ideation to suicide attempt in the short-term: Two large cohorts of depressed outpatients.

BACKGROUND: This study explores factors associated with transitioning from recent suicidal ideation (SI) to suicide attempt (SA) in depressed outpatients. METHODS: This is a case-control study nested in two cohorts (LUEUR and GENESE) of depressed adult outpatients recruited in France and followed up for six weeks. SI, depression, anxiety, insomnia, impulsivity, and hopelessness were assessed with validated scales. Differences between patients with SI who attempted suicide during follow up and those who did not were explored using logistic regressions. RESULTS: There was a slight majority of females in both cohorts. Mean age was 47.2 years in LUEUR and 49.4 years in GENESE. Of the 3785 participants in the LUEUR cohort, 72 (2.1 %) attempted suicide within the 6-week period vs. 19 of the 2698 participants (0.7 %) in the GENESE cohort. In LUEUR, factors associated with SA within the 6-week period were lifetime history of SA (OR = 5.35, 95 % CI = 3.30-8.66), high SI at baseline (OR = 3.87, 95 % CI = 2.4-6.24), associated treatments (OR = 3.28, 95 % CI = 2.00-5.38), and less improvement over follow-up in the following symptoms: SI (OR = 3.64, 95 % CI = 1.89-7.02), depression (OR = 3.66, 95 % CI = 1.76-7.62), and anxiety (OR = 3.26, 95 % CI = 1.46-7.27). In GENESE, associated factors were lifetime history of SAs (OR = 9.93, 95 % CI = 3.83-25.80), and less improvement in SI (OR = 9.20, 95 % CI = 3.61-23.44). LIMITATIONS: Heterogeneity of cohorts prevented from performing a pooled analysis with a greater sample size. CONCLUSIONS: In depressed outpatients, lack of improvement was strongly associated with a short-term SA, particularly in patients with a history of previous SAs. Fast acting treatment on SI and depression may help prevent SAs.

Additive effects between prematurity and postnatal risk factors of suicidal behavior.

BACKGROUND: Pre- and perinatal insults increase suicide risk. The main objective of the present study is to investigate if prematurity interacts in an additive fashion with postnatal risk factors of suicidal behavior. METHOD: Sample and procedure: 857 adult suicide attempters consecutively hospitalized for a suicide attempt were included. Studied characteristics of suicide attempts included use of a violent mean, age at first suicide attempt, and number of suicide attempts. Risk factors of suicidal behavior included indexes of pre- and perinatal adversity, childhood maltreatment as measured with the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, personality traits as measured with the Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire, and family history of suicidal behavior. STATISTICAL ANALYSES: Comparisons between the different patterns of suicide attempts characteristics were made using logistic regression with crude and adjusted odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals. RESULTS: The risk of violent suicide attempts increased significantly in patients born prematurely (OR [95%] = 2.38[1.12-5.08]). There were additive effects for very preterm birth and 1) emotional abuse (OR [95% CI] = 4.52 [1.75-11.60]), 2) novelty seeking (OR [95% CI] = 8.92[3.09-25.7]), and 3) harm avoidance (OR [95% CI] = 5.81 [2.43-13.90]) on the age at first suicide attempt, after adjustment for potential confounders. CONCLUSIONS: Very preterm birth appears to be the first step in a cascade of stressors across lifetime, which affects the risk and the severity of suicidal behavior. Furthermore, very preterm birth, childhood maltreatment and personality traits have additive effects that influence the age at onset of suicide attempt. Our findings may have potential consequences for preventive policies.