TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2002//
TI  - Mental disorder in elderly suicides: a case-control study
JO  - American journal of psychiatry
A1  - Waern, Margda
A1  - Runeson, Bo S.
A1  - Allebeck, P.
A1  - Beskow, Jan
A1  - Rubenowitz, Eva
A1  - Skoog, I.
A1  - Wilhelmsson, Katarina
SP  - 450
EP  - 455
VL  - 159
IS  - 3
N2  - OBJECTIVE: The authors' goal was to study the importance of different psychiatric disorders in relation to suicide in individuals 65 years old or older. METHOD: The psychological autopsy approach was used to study 85 cases of suicide among subjects who were 65 years old or older; 153 living comparison subjects from the same age group who were randomly selected from the tax register were interviewed face-to-face. Retrospective axis I diagnoses were made according to DSM-IV on the basis of interview data and medical records. RESULTS: Ninety-seven percent of the suicide victims fulfilled criteria for at least one DSM-IV axis I diagnosis, compared with 18% of the living comparison subjects. Recurrent major depressive disorder was a very strong risk factor for suicide, as was substance use disorder. An elevated risk was also associated with minor depressive disorder, dysthymic disorder, psychotic disorder, single-episode major depressive disorder, and anxiety disorder. Comorbid axis I disorders were observed in 15 (38%) of the 39 elderly subjects with major depressive disorder who had committed suicide. CONCLUSIONS: Although recurrent major depressive disorder was the mental disorder most strongly associated with suicide, the findings of this study suggest that elderly individuals who commit suicide represent a heterogeneous group with regard to mental disorders, implying a need for differentiated prevention strategies.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0002-953X
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/
ID  - ref1
ER  -