When somebody commits suicide, even the dead person's family and closest friends are caught in shock. Almost always, you hear them say, "I never saw it coming."
However, a new study has allowed experts to now detect early warning signs of suicide.
Researchers analyzed behavior patterns of people from all over the world that had occurred prior to many suicides and suicidal attempts, and found that depression played a major role in the events that led to suicide acts. With this, the researchers aim to change current clinical approaches to people suffering from depression.
In their large-scale analysis called the BRIDGE-MIX study, the researchers looked at 2,811 patients who suffered from depression with 628 reported to have had already attempted suicide. The analysis required a psychiatrist to interview each patient, which is a standard protocol in the care and treatment of patients who are mentally ill. Apart from previous attempts of suicide, the researchers also looked at each participant's family history, previous and current treatment and clinical presentation. In addition, the participants took the standard Global Assessment of Functioning. Their scores and other parameters were considered.
While depression may be a bit of an obvious cause of suicidal attempts, not all patients suffering from the illness eventually resort to suicide. The researchers then took a look at the behavior patterns and characteristics of depressed patients who reported to have committed suicide, and compared them with those of depressed patients but who did not report of attempting suicide. They found a higher risk of suicidal attempts in patients who had "depressive mixed states," compared with those who were merely depressed.
According to the study's author Dr. Dina Popovic, a psychiatrist and clinical researcher from the University of Barcelona, "A depressive mixed state is where a patient is depressed, but also has symptoms of 'excitation,' or mania." In their study, 40 percent of those who were depressed and attempted suicide had gone through a "mixed episode" prior to suicidal attempt.
In addition to states of mania, the researchers noticed a couple of behavior patterns in depressed patients who reported of attempting suicide. Risky behavior (for example promiscuity or reckless driving), psychomotor agitation (fidgeting) and impulsivity were seen to be among behaviors that may lead to a suicidal attempt.
In this large-scale, multinational analysis, the researchers point out, more importantly, that better care and evaluation needs to be given to patients suffering from depression in order to prevent future suicidal attempts. The criteria used by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), for one, assessed only 12 percent of the study's participants as having mixed states, while the method used by the researchers revealed a greater number - 40 percent - of depressive mixed patients and therefore, a huge number of patients are still at risk.
Known to be the number one cause of death among young men in the UK, suicide is also the leading cause of 800,000 deaths each year. That and millions of suicidal attempts make it the 10th leading cause of deaths worldwide.
Photo: Jason Kuffer | Flickr
