Advanced search×

Suicide and no axis I psychopathology.

Carl Ernst, Aleksandra Lalovic, Alain Lesage, Monique Seguin, Michel Tousignant, and Gustavo Turecki

BMC Psychiatry (2004) PMID 15053834 PMCID 400739

BACKGROUND: It is unclear why approximately 10% of suicide completers seem to be psychiatrically normal. To better understand this issue, we studied suicide completers without an axis I diagnosis and compared them, on measures of psychopathology other than axis I, to normal controls and suicide cases with axis I psychopathology. METHODS: 168 suicide cases were examined by way of a psychological autopsy with the best possible informant. Sixteen cases did not meet criteria for an axis I diagnosis; each of these cases was then age and gender matched to 52 suicide completers with an axis I disorder and 110 normal controls. RESULTS: Fourteen of sixteen suicide cases without an axis I diagnosis had detectable abnormalities that were more similar to the axis I diagnosed suicide group than to a living group. Both suicide groups were similar in the total number of past suicide attempts, the total number of individuals with an axis II disorder, and similar scores on measures of impulsive-aggressive behaviors. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that most of the individuals who committed suicide and appeared psychiatrically normal after a psychological autopsy may probably have an underlying psychiatric process that the psychological autopsy method, as commonly carried out, failed to detect.

DOI: 10.1186/1471-244X-4-7
Version: za2963e q8za3 q8zb9 q8zce q8zd4 q8zea q8zf3 q8zg3
View PDF

Similar articles you may find interesting…

  1. Connecting masculinity and depression among international male university students.
    John L JL Oliffe, Steve S Robertson, ... John S JS Ogrodniczuk

    Qual Health Res 20(7):987-98 (2010) PMID 20360568

    International university students can experience isolation amid academic pressures. Such circumstances can manifest as or exacerbate depression. This qualitative study involved 15 international male students at a Canadian university who were diagnosed or self-identified as having dep...
  2. Comparison of the effects of four suicide prevention programs for family and friends of high-risk suicidal men who do not seek help themselv...
    Brian L BL Mishara, Janie J Houle, and Brigitte B Lavoie

    Suicide Life Threat Behav 35(3):329-42 (2005) PMID 16156493

    Callers to a suicide prevention center concerned about high risk men were randomly invited to participate in one of four programs: Information Session, Information Session with Telephone Follow-up, Rapid Referral to mental health and abuse programs, or Telephone Support. Comparison of pre-test, 2 mon...
  3. [Can social support help prevent men from suicide attempt?].
    Janie J Houle, Brian L BL Mishara, and François F Chagnon

    Sante Ment Que 30(2):61-83 (2005) PMID 16505925

    The goal of this study is to investigate whether social support may constitute a protective factor for attempted suicide among men and, if so, to identify the most important sources and forms of support. The study compares two groups of men who experienced comparable stressful events during the last...