TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2012//
TI  - Suicide attempts by self-poisoning in elderly
JO  - Journal of research in medical sciences
A1  - Gheshlaghi, F.
A1  - Jafar Salehi, M.
SP  - S272
EP  - S275
VL  - 17
IS  - Suppl 2
N2  - BACKGROUND: Suicide is a major public health concern. This investigation assessed elderly patients treated for self-intoxication in a poisoning referral center. <br><br>METHODS: A retrospective and descriptive study was performed from the point of view of demographic, psychiatric and clinical factors related to the self-poisoning for suicide attempts in subjects aged over 65 years. <br><br>RESULTS: The examined population consisted of 43 subjects including 30 males and 13 females with an age of 65 to 83 years (mean age = 72.5 years in males and 73.5 years in females). The majority of subjects were retired [35(81.4%)] and, many cases lived with their family [39(90.6%)]. 27.9% of subjects had been undergoing psychiatric treatment. Depressive disorders (reactive) and endogenic depression (affective) were recognized in 8 subjects (66.7%). 51% suffered from chronic diseases including hypertension (33.3%), coronary artery decease (30.4%), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (15.9%) and diabetes (10.1%). Two cases had a history of previous suicidal attempt. The most frequently used substances in the attempts were medications (58%), opioids (23.2%), pesticide (11.6%) methanol (4.6%) and hair remover (2.3%). The mean duration of hospitalization was 1.3 days. <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: The high rate of depression and chronic diseases in elderly with suicidal attempt necessitates preventive interventions.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1735-1995
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/
ID  - ref1
ER  -