Mental disorders and comorbidity in suicide
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence and comorbidity of current mental disorders defined by DSM-III-R among a random sample of suicide victims from a nationwide suicide population. METHOD: Using a psychological autopsy method, the authors collected comprehensive data on all suicide victims in Finland during 1 year. Retrospective axis I-III consensus diagnoses were assigned to 229 (172 male, 57 female) victims. RESULTS: One or more diagnoses on axis I were made for 93% of the victims. The most prevalent disorders were depressive disorders (59%) and alcohol dependence or abuse (43%). The prevalence of major depression was higher among females (46%) than among males (26%). Alcohol dependence was more common among the males (39% versus 18% for females). A diagnosis on axis II was made for 31% and at least one diagnosis on axis III for 46% of the cases. Only 12% of the victims received one axis I diagnosis without any comorbidity. CONCLUSIONS: The majority of suicide victims suffered from comorbid mental disorders. Comorbidity needs to be taken into account when analyzing the relationship between suicide and mental disorders and in planning treatment strategies for suicide prevention in clinical practice.
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Alcohol use is strongly associated with self-directed harm, including non-suicidal self-injury and suicide.
“alcohol use is strongly associated with self-directed harm, encompassing both non-suicidal self-injury (Haw et al. 2001) and suicide (Barraclough et al. 1974; Henriksson et al. 1993; Foster et al. 1997)”
From Decoding the bidirectional links between alcohol misuse and aggression: toward a unified translational framework (2026) · cites this paper as Henriksson et al. 1993
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- Authors
- HENRIKSSON, M. M., Aro, H. M., MARTTUNEN, M. J., Heikkinen, M. E., Isometsä, E. T., Kuoppasalmi, K. I., & Lönnqvist, J. K.
- Venue
- American Journal of Psychiatry
- Published
- 1993-06-01
- Volume
- 150
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 935-940
- ISSN
- 0002-953X (ISSN-L)
- 1535-7228
- OpenAlex
- W1561716061
- Cited by
- 861
- References
- 2
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 16 · 2023: 21 · 2022: 28 · 2021: 32 · 2020: 23 · 2019: 23 · 2018: 20 · 2017: 33 · 2016: 32 · 2015: 24 · 2014: 32 · 2013: 29 · 2012: 34
- FWCI
- 34.86
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- American Journal of Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Suicide and Self-Harm Studies
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Homicide, Infanticide, and Child Abuse
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Mental Health Treatment and Access
- Keywords
- suicide, mental illness, comorbidities, depressive disorders, major depressive disorder, alcoholism, alcohol abuse, psychological autopsy, suicide victims, sex differences, suicide prevention
- MeSH terms
- Suicide Prevention, Adolescent, Adult, Age Factors, Aged, Alcoholism, Mental Disorders, Child, Depressive Disorder, Female, Finland, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Sampling Studies, Sex Factors, Suicide, Wounds and Injuries, Comorbidity, Prevalence
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