TY  - JOUR
PY  - 1998//
TI  - Suicide attempts preceding completed suicide
JO  - British journal of psychiatry
A1  - Isometsa, E. T.
A1  - Lonnqvist, J. K.
SP  - 531
EP  - 535
VL  - 173
IS  - 
N2  - BACKGROUND: This study investigated three questions with major implications for suicide prevention: the sensitivity of the history of previous suicide attempt(s) as an indicator of suicide risk, the time interval from a preceding suicide attempt to the fatal one, and switching of suicide methods by those eventually completing suicide. METHOD: The lifetime history of suicide attempts and the methods the victims (n = 1397) used were examined in a nationwide psychological autopsy study comprising all suicides in Finland within a 12-month research period in 1987-1988. RESULTS: Overall, 56% of suicide victims were found to have died at their first suicide attempt, more males (62%) than females (38%). In 19% of males and 39% of females the victim had made a non-fatal attempt during the final year. Of the victims with previous attempts, 82% had used at least two different methods in their suicide attempts (the fatal included). CONCLUSIONS: Most male and a substantial proportion of female suicides die in their first suicide attempt, a fact that necessitates early recognition of suicide risk, particularly among males. Recognition of periods of high suicide risk on the grounds of recent non-fatal suicide attempts is likely to be important for suicide prevention among females. Subjects completing suicide commonly switch from one suicide method to another, a finding that weakens but does not negate the credibility of restrictions on the availability of lethal methods as a preventive measure.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0007-1250
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/
ID  - ref1
ER  -