The outcome of adolescent suicide attempts

Abstract

A sample of 265 adolescents hospitalized between 1971 and 1980 in a psychiatric unit following a suicide attempt was studied to evaluate outcome. After an average of 11.5 years, 48% of the original sample, or 127 subjects, could be traced. Thirty-nine per cent of these subjects showed signs of improvement, 22% appeared to be unchanged and 33% were worse. Substantial dropout rates were found in postdischarge care, only 32% of the patients having been followed up for a sufficient amount of time. Fifteen subjects had died, only one of whom from a natural cause. Of the remaining 14, 5 had committed suicide and 9 had died from unnatural or violent causes other than suicide, the cause of death appearing in all cases to be closely linked to the subject's adolescent disorders. The implications of these findings for suicide prevention are discussed.

Recommended care for young people (15–19 years) after suicide attempts in certain European countries

“…While girls repeat suicide attempts more often, they take their own lives less often than boys, which should entail a higher rate of care for boys. But the dierence in recommended aftercare registered in this study may perhaps be due to a more negative attitude towards care among boys than among girls of the same age (6,8), as well as due to more negative attitudes of clinicians to boys with suicide attempts who have personality disorders (2, 31±33).…”

Psychological Distress Following Suicidality Among Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Youths: Role of Social Relationships

“…For example, in a large cohort of adolescents (Fergusson & Lynskey, 1995), youths who reported a past suicide attempt (at or prior to age 14) were 17 times more likely to be diagnosed (at age 16) with a mood disorder, 5 times more likely to be diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, and 13 times more likely to be diagnosed with conduct disorder. In addition, a follow-up study of adolescent suicide attempters found that 55% had the same or worse psychosocial functioning 11 years postattempt (Granboulan et al, 1995).…”

“…For example, in a large cohort of adolescents (Fergusson & Lynskey, 1995), youths who reported a past suicide attempt (at or prior to age 14) were 17 times more likely to be diagnosed (at age 16) with a mood disorder, 5 times more likely to be diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, and 13 times more likely to be diagnosed with conduct disorder. In addition, a follow-up study of adolescent suicide attempters found that 55% had the same or worse psychosocial functioning 11 years postattempt (Granboulan et al, 1995).If we can generalize from heterosexual youths to GLB youths, we would expect that GLB youths who attempt suicide would have high levels of psychological distress for some time following their suicidality. Among GLB youths, significant relations have been found between suicidality and psychological distress (e.g., Hershberger & D'Augelli, 1995;Russell & Joyner, 2001;Safren & Heimberg, 1999).…”

Adolescent suicide attempters: post-attempt course and implications for treatment

“…For example, in a 6-year follow-up Nardini-Maillard and Ladame (1980) found that 3.8% of their original sample of 130 adolescent suicide attempters had died by suicide. Similarly, in another French study, 3.9% of 127 patients traced had committed suicide by the time of follow-up (mean follow-up time 11.5 years; Granboulan et al, 1995). These rates may underestimate the true incidence of completed suicide, since some of the adolescents who were untraceable in these studies may have been deceased.…”

“…For example, an active method of attempt, such as hanging or use of a firearm, is more likely to result in a future completed suicide than a passive method of attempt, such as ingestion (Otto, 1972;Granboulan et al, 1995). In Otto's (1972) study, 70% of adolescents who later went on to commit suicide did so by the same method that had characterized their initial attempt.…”