Zivin et al. | Peer Reviewed | Research and Practice | 2193 RESEARCH AND PRACTICE  Objectives. We sought to report clinical and demographic factors associated with suicide among depressed veterans in an attempt to determine what characteristics identified depressed veterans at high risk for suicide.Methods. We used longitudinal, nationally representative data (1999)(2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)) to determine suicide rates among depressed veterans, estimating time until suicide using Cox proportional hazards regression models.Results. Of 807694 veterans meeting study criteria, 1683 (0.21%) committed suicide during follow-up. Increased suicide risks were observed among male, younger, and non-Hispanic White patients. Veterans without service-connected disabilities, with inpatient psychiatric hospitalizations in the year prior to their qualifying depression diagnosis, with comorbid substance use, and living in the southern or western United States were also at higher risk. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) with comorbid depression was associated with lower suicide rates, and younger depressed veterans with PTSD had a higher suicide rate than did older depressed veterans with PTSD.Conclusions. Unlike the general population, older and younger veterans are more prone to suicide than are middle-aged veterans. Future research should examine the relationship between depression, PTSD, health service use, and suicide risks among veterans. (Am J Public Health.

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BackgroundObservational research frequently uses administrative codes for mental health or substance use diagnoses and for important behaviours such as suicide attempts. We sought to validate codes (International Classification of Diseases, 9th edition, clinical modification diagnostic and E-codes) entered in Veterans Health Administration administrative data for patients with depression versus a gold standard of electronic medical record text ("chart notation").MethodsThree random samples of patients were selected, each stratified by geographic region, gender, and year of cohort entry, from a VHA depression treatment cohort from April 1, 1999 to September 30, 2004. The first sample was selected from patients who died by suicide, the second from patients who remained alive on the date of death of suicide cases, and the third from patients with a new start of a commonly used antidepressant medication. Four variables were assessed using administrative codes in the year prior to the index date: suicide attempt, alcohol abuse/dependence, drug abuse/dependence and tobacco use.ResultsSpecificity was high (≥ 90%) for all four administrative codes, regardless of the sample. Sensitivity was ≤75% and was particularly low for suicide attempt (≤ 17%). Positive predictive values for alcohol dependence/abuse and tobacco use were high, but barely better than flipping a coin for illicit drug abuse/dependence. Sensitivity differed across the three samples, but was highest in the suicide death sample.ConclusionsAdministrative data-based diagnoses among VHA records have high specificity, but low sensitivity. The accuracy level varies by different diagnosis and by different patient subgroup.

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