Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-fbnjt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-09T13:47:52.526Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Alcohol-dependent patients attempting and not attempting suicide: a comparison

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 June 2014

Özkan Pektaş ,
Hasan Mirsal ,
Ayhan Kalyoncu ,
Nasibe Ünsalan  and
Mansur Beyazyürek
Özkan Pektaş
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Maltepe University, Istanbul, Turkey
Hasan Mirsal*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Maltepe University, Istanbul, Turkey
Ayhan Kalyoncu
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Maltepe University, Istanbul, Turkey
Nasibe Ünsalan
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Maltepe University, Istanbul, Turkey
Mansur Beyazyürek
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Maltepe University, Istanbul, Turkey
*
Hasan Mirsal, MD, Balikli Rum Hastanesi Vakfi, Anatolia Klinikleri, BelgradKapi Yolu No: 2 Zeytinburnu, Istanbul, Turkey. Tel: +90 2122492063; Fax: +90 2122492681; E-mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Background:

Alcohol dependence is a psychiatric disorder associated with an increased risk of suicidal behaviour. This is also associated with an increased number of suicide risk factors.

Objective:

The current study examined the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of a number of alcohol-dependent patients who attempted suicide.

Methods:

We studied a consecutive series of 377 alcohol-dependent patients in our in-patient clinics. Their alcohol-use histories were assessed through semistructured interviews. The Suicidal Behaviors Questionnaire, the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, the Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test and the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale were administered to all patients. Serum total cholesterol levels, mean corpuscular volume, the liver enzymes gamma glutamyl transferase, aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase were routinely measured. In the statistical analyses, Student's t-test and chi-squared tests were applied.

Results:

Of the 377 alcohol-dependent patients, 89 (23.6%) had histories of attempted suicide. Thirty-four (42.5%) of the 80 female alcohol-dependent patients and 55 (18.5%) of the 297 male alcohol-dependent patients had attempted suicide; this gender difference was statistically significant (χ2 = 27.7, P < 0.001). A greater proportion of the suicide attempters than of the non-attempters met the Diagnostic Statistical Manual IV criteria for another psychiatric disorder (60.6%, n = 54, vs. 40.6%, n = 117; χ2 = 14.8; df = 6; P < 0.05). The difference of total cholesterol levels between female (mean = 144.0, SD = 58.3; mean = 158.0, SD = 83.9; t = 4.5; P < 0.05) and male (mean = 133.7, SD = 50.5; mean = 163.6, SD = 69.7; t = 11.7; P < 0.01) attempters and non-attempters was statistically significant.

Conclusion:

These results suggest that suicide attempts in alcohol-dependent patients are associated with more profound biopsychosocial pathology and decreased serum cholesterol levels.

Keywords

alcohol dependencebiochemical markerscharacteristicscholesterolsuicide
Type
Original Article
Information
Acta Neuropsychiatrica , Volume 16 , Issue 4 , August 2004 , pp. 204 - 211
Copyright
Copyright © 2004 Blackwell Munksgaard

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Roy, A, Linnoila, M. Alcoholism and suicide. Suicide Life Threat Behav 1986;16: 244–273.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Agargun, MY, Kara, H, Karamustafalioglu, N, Ucisik, M. Demographic data and clinical features of alcoholic suicide attempters. Turk Psikiyatri Derg 1995;6: 198–202 (in Turkish). Google Scholar
Berglund, M. Suicide in alcoholism: a prospective study of 88 suicides, 1: the multidimensional diagnosis at first admission. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1984;41: 888–891.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Chignon, JM, Cortes, MJ, Martin, P, Chabannes, JP. Attempted suicide and alcohol dependence: results of an epidemiologic survey. Encephale 1998;24: 347–354 (in French).Google ScholarPubMed
Roy, A. Relation of family history of suicide to suicide attempts in alcoholics. Am J Psychiatry 2000;157: 2050–2051.DOI: 10.1176/appi.ajp.157.12.2050CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Preuss, UW, Schuckit, MA, Smith, TLet al. Comparison of 3190 alcohol-dependent individuals with and without suicide attempts. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2002;26: 471–477.DOI: 10.1097/00000374-200204000-00006Google ScholarPubMed
Mirsal, H, Pektaş, O, Kalyoncu, A, Mirsal, N, Beyazyürek, M. The research of suicidal behavior in alcohol dependence. Journal of Dependence 2001;2: 21–24 (inTurkish).Google Scholar
Whitters, A, Cadoret, R, Widmer, R. Factors associated with suicide attempts in alcohol abusers. J Affect Disord 1985;9: 19–23.DOI: 10.1016/0165-0327(85)90005-9CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Koller, G, Preuss, UW, Bottlender, M, Wenzel, K, Soyka, M. Impulsivity and aggression as predictors of suicide attempts in alcoholics. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 2002;252: 155–160.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Schuckit, MA. Primary men alcoholics with histories of suicide attempts. J Stud Alcohol 1986;47: 78–81.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hesselbrock, M, Hesselbrock, V, Syzmanski, K, Weidenman, M. Suicide attempts and alcoholism. J Stud Alcohol 1988;49: 436–442.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hawton, K, Simkin, S, Fagg, J. Deliberate self-harm in alcohol and drug misusers: patient characteristics and patterns of clinical care. Drug Alcohol Rev 1997;16: 123–129. CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hasin, D, Grant, B, Endicott, J. Treated and untreated suicide attempts in substance abuse patients. J Nerv Ment Dis 1988;176: 289–294.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dube, SR, Anda, RF, Felitti, VJ, Chapman, DP, Williamson, DF, Giles, WH. Childhood abuse, household dysfunction, and the risk of attempted suicide throughout the life span. JAMA 2001;286: 3089–3096.DOI: 10.1001/jama.286.24.3089CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Iribarren, C, Reed, DM, Wergowske, G, Burchfiel, CM, Dwyer, JH. Serum cholesterol levels and mortality due to suicide and trauma in the Honolulu Heart Program. Arch Intern Med 1995;155: 695–700.DOI: 10.1001/archinte.155.7.695CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ellison, LF, Morrison, HI. Low serum cholesterol concentration and risk of suicide. Epidemiology 2001; 12: 168–172.DOI: 10.1097/00001648-200103000-00007CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Golier, JA, Marzuk, PM, Leon, AC, Weiner, C, Tardiff, K. Low serum cholesterol level and attempted suicide. Am J Psychiatry 1995;152: 419–423.Google ScholarPubMed
American Psyhiatric Association. Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, 4th edn. Washington: The American Psychiatric Association, 1994. Google Scholar
First, MB, Spitzer, RL, Gibbon, M, Williams, JBW. Structured clinical interview for DSM-IV axis I disorders (SCID-I) , Clinical Version. Washington D.C.: American Psychiatric Press, Inc., 1997. Google Scholar
Çorapçioglu, A, Aydemýr, O, Yildiz, M, Esen, A, Koroglu, E. Structured clinical interview for axis I disorders , Clinical Version. Ankara: Hekimler Yayýn Birliði, 1999 (in Turkish).Google Scholar
Spitzer, RL, Williams, JBW, Gibbon, M, First, MB. Structured clinical interview for DSM-III-R axis II disorders (SCID-II). Washington: American Psychiatric Press, Inc. 1990. Google Scholar
Sorias, S, Saygili, R, Elbi, H. Structured clinical interview for DSM-III-R, Turkish version, Personality Disorders Form: SCID-II. Izmir: Ege Üniversitesi Basimevi, 1990 (in Turkish).Google Scholar
Kranzler, HR, Babor, TF, Lauerman, RJ. Problems associated with average alcohol consumption and frequency of intoxication in a medical population. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 1990;14: 119–126.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Linehan, MM, Nielsen, SL. Assessment of suicide ideation and parasuicide: hopelessness and social desirability. J Consult Clin Psychol 1981;49: 773–775.DOI: 10.1037//0022-006X.49.5.773CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bayam, G, Di̇lbaz, N, Bi̇tli̇s, V, Holat, H, Tüzer, T. Assessment of suicide behavior and depression, hopelessness, suicide ideation: the validity and reliability of the ‘Suicidal Behaviors Scale’. Kriz Dergisi 1995; 3: 223–225 (in Turkish).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fink, LA, Bernstein, D, Handelsman, L, Foote, J, Lovejoy, M. Initial reliability and validity of the childhood trauma interview: a new multidimensional measure of childhood interpersonal trauma. Am J Psychiatry 1995;152: 1329–1335.Google ScholarPubMed
Aslan, H, Alparslan, N. The reliability, validity and factor structure of the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire among a group of University students. Turk Psikiyatri Derg 1999;10: 275–285 (inTurkish).Google Scholar
Gibbs, LE. Validity and reliability of the Michigan alcoholism screening test: a review. Drug Alcohol Depend 1983;12: 279–285.DOI: 10.1016/0376-8716(83)90071-6CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Coskunol, H, Baðdiken, I, Sorias, S, Saygili, R. Validity and reliability of the Michigan alcoholism screening test. Ege Tip Dergisi 1995;34: 15–18 (in Turkish).Google Scholar
Hamilton, M. A rating scale for depression. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 1960;23: 56–62.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Akdemir, A, Orsel, SD, Dag, I, Turkcapar, H, Işcan, N, Ozbay, H. Clinical use and the reliability and validity of the Turkish version of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale. The Journal of Psychiatry Psychology Psychopharamacology 1996;4: 251–259 (in Turkish).Google Scholar
Rodger, RS, Fletcher, K, Fei̇l, BJ, Rahman, H, Svi̇land, L, Hamilton, PJ. Factor influencing haematological measurements in healthy adults. J Chronic Dis 1987;40: 943–947.DOI: 10.1016/0021-9681(87)90144-5CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Rosman, AS, Lieber, CS. Biochemical markers of alcohol consumption. Alcohol Health Res World 1990;14: 208–218. Google Scholar
Salaspuro, M. Conventional and coming laboratory markers of alcoholism and heavy drinking. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 1986;10 (Suppl. 6):5–12. CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Driessen, M, Veltrup, C, Weber, J, John, U, Wetterling, T, Dilling, H. Psychiatric co-morbidity, suicidal behaviour and suicidal ideation in alcoholics seeking treatment. Addiction 1998;93: 889–894.DOI: 10.1046/j.1360-0443.1998.93688910.xCrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Roy, A, Lamparski, D, Dejong, J, Moore, V, Linnoila, M. Characteristics of alcoholics who attempt suicide. Am J Psychiatry 1990;147: 761–765.Google ScholarPubMed
Conner, KR, Beautrais, AL, Conwell, Y. Risk factors for suicide and medically serious suicide attempts among alcoholics: analyses of Canterbury Suicide Project data. J Stud Alcohol 2003;64: 551–554.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hawton, K, Fagg, J, McKeown, SP. Alcoholism, alcohol and attempted suicide. Alcohol 1989;24: 3–9. Google ScholarPubMed
Murphy, G, Wetzel, R. Family history of suicidal behavior among suicide attempters. J Nerv Ment Dis 1982;170: 86–90. CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Maes, M, Smith, R, Christophe, Aet al. Lower serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) in major depression and in depressed men with serious suicidal attempts: relationship with immune-inflammatory markers. Acta Psychiatr Scand 1997;95: 212–221.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed