Suicide in the elderly

Abstract

Despite the fact that suicide and its prevention continues to be a priority area for health care in the UK, suicide in the elderly remains a neglected subject receiving little interest and research attention. The Green Paper Our Healthier Nation (Secretary of State for Health, 1998) maintained the concept of setting targets for suicide reduction originally proposed in The Health of the Nation strategy. The new target proposes that by the year 2010 the death rate from suicide and undetermined injury will be reduced by at least a further sixth (17%) from the baseline of 1996. The setting of such targets has always been a contentious issue among many psychiatrists, who have concerns that they may be used as a quality measure of psychiatric services, especially as some consider that social influences predominate over health care issues. The subsequent debate has focused on targeting specific at-risk groups, notably severely mentally ill young men, Asian women and those who deliberately harm themselves.

Seriousness and lethality of attempted suicide: A systematic review

“…In fact, seriousness and lethality of suicide attempts are highest in older adults (Beautrais, 2001;Cattell, 2000;Conwell & Thompson, 2008;Conwell et al, 2002;Frierson, 1991;Oquendo et al, 2003;Spicer & Miller, 2000). Indeed, among older adults, a far higher proportion of suicidal acts are fatal: non-fatal and fatal selfharm are more closely related in older than in younger adults (Dennis & Owens, 2012).…”

“…As for the method of suicide, elderly people, especially males, tend to use more drastic and effective means to kill themselves than younger age groups, with a preference for firearms and hanging (Cattell, 2000;Frierson, 1991;Kaplan, McFarland, & Huguet, 2009;McIntosh & Santos, 1986;O'Connell et al, 2004), but method-specific case fatality is generally higher in males and older individuals for all employed methods of suicide (Elnour & Harrison, 2008;Miller, Azrael, & Hemenway, 2004). The seriousness of suicidal acts in the elderly is further exacerbated by the fact that there are fewer warnings of suicidal intent (Conwell et al, 1998): despite the assumption that hopelessness and suicidality are natural and understandable consequences of the aging process, the prevalence of suicidal feelings of forlornness and despair is lower than in the other age groups.…”

Elderly suicide in primary care

“…The higher prevalence of physical illness in the San Diego study might be because they considered any physical complaints, reported by any informant, even if did not lead to seeking medical advice as a physical morbidity. Cattell (2000) estimated that physical illness directly contributed to suicide in around 60-70% of the elderly suicides. The increased physical morbidity in the elderly suicides appears to be naturally expected with age.…”

Elderly suicide: Three cases report

“…Diğer yaş gruplarında olduğu gibi, yaşlılık döne-minde de alkol ve/veya uyuşturucu kullanımı intihar riski ile ilişkilidir (6,7,17). Alkol ve madde kullanımı, intihar riskini normal bireylere oranla 2-3 kat arttırmaktadır (42).…”