Cultural and regional differences on the well-known elevated suicide risk in substance use disorders have not been clarified yet. Therefore, the suicide risk associated with substance use disorders in a society of transition and in a socially and economically stable society should be identified and compared. Data from two population-based matched case-control studies were used to analyse the as...

DESCRIPTION Update of the 2004 U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendation on screening for suicide risk. METHODS The USPSTF reviewed the evidence on the accuracy and reliability of instruments used to screen for increased suicide risk, benefits and harms of screening for increased suicide risk, and benefits and harms of treatments to prevent suicide. POPULATION This recomme...

Hawton and colleagues 1 found that, relative to the general population, NHS female doctors had about twice the expected suicide rate, whereas NHS male doctors had about half the expected suicide rate. They concluded that, " the excess risk of suicide of female doctors in the NHS workforce is an important pattern that should be carefully monitored. This is especially so in the light of increasin...

In order to evaluate the relevance of suicide risk in families affected by Huntington's disease (HD), 2793 subjects registered with the National Huntington's Disease Research Roster were studied. Suicide was the reported cause of death in 205 subjects (7.3%). This group included affected and possibly affected subjects, subjects at 50% and 25% risk, possibly at risk subjects, and normal relative...

BACKGROUND The field is in need of novel and transdiagnostic risk factors for suicide. The National Institute of Mental Health's Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) provides a framework that may help advance research on suicidal behavior. METHOD We conducted a meta-analytic review of existing prospective risk and protective factors for suicidal thoughts and behaviors (ideation, attempts, and deat...

Lawyers make short work of “clinical experience” testimony by defendants and expert witnesses in suicide malpractice cases. Clinical experience, unaided by evidence-based research, can be idiosyncratic, insufficient, uninformed, or just plain wrong when applied to complex, fact-specific suicide cases. Both in the clinical setting and in providing expert witness testimony, clinical experience ca...

BACKGROUND Deliberate self-harm (DSH) is the strongest risk factor for future suicide. Up-to-date information on the extent of risk is lacking. AIMS To investigate the risk of suicide after DSH during a long follow-up period. METHOD A mortality follow-up study to 2000 was conducted on 11 583 patients who presented to hospital after DSH between 1978 and 1997. Data were obtained from a genera...

BACKGROUND Few studies have examined suicide risk in individuals once they have left the military. We aimed to investigate the rate, timing, and risk factors for suicide in all those who had left the UK Armed Forces (1996-2005). METHODS AND FINDINGS We carried out a cohort study of ex-Armed Forces personnel by linking national databases of discharged personnel and suicide deaths (which includ...

In the managed care era, mental health professionals increasingly rely upon suicide prevention contracts in the management of patients at suicide risk. Although asking a patient if he or she is suicidal and obtaining a written or oral contract against suicide can be useful, these measures by themselves are insufficient. "No harm" contracts cannot take the place of formal suicide risk assessment...