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Thyrotrophin Response to Thyreostimulin in Affectively Ill Women Relationship to Suicidal Behaviour

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 January 2018

P. Linkowski
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, Hôpital Erasme, Free University of Brussels
J. P. Van Wettere
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, Hôpital Erasme, Free University of Brussels
M. Kerkhofs
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, Hôpital Erasme, Free University of Brussels
H. Brauman
Affiliation:
Radioimmunology Unit, Laboratory of Clinical Biology, Hôpital Brugmann, Free University of Brussels
J. Mendlewicz
Affiliation:
Hôpital Erasme, Free University of Brussels, 808 – Route de Lennik – 1070, Brussels, Belgium

Summary

Past history of suicidal behaviour was investigated in 51 depressed women (27 unipolar and 24 bipolar) in whom the TSH response to TRH was studied. Patients with a history of violent suicidal attempts were shown to have a reduced TSH response to TRH, compared to depressed patients with a history of non-violent suicidal attempts and depressed patients with no history of suicidal behaviour. A five-year follow-up study on these patients revealed that four patients who died from suicide had an absence of TSH response to TRH.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © 1983 The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

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