Association of testosterone levels and future suicide attempts in females with bipolar disorder

Abstract

BackgroundConsiderable evidence suggests that testosterone may play a role in the pathophysiology of mood disorders in females. This is the first prospective study to examine whether blood testosterone levels predict suicide attempts in females with bipolar disorder. MethodsFemales with a DSM-IV diagnosis of a bipolar disorder in a depressive or mixed episode with at least one past suicide attempt were enrolled. Demographic and clinical parameters were assessed and recorded. Plasma testosterone was assayed using a double antibody radioimmunoassay procedure. Patients were followed up prospectively for up to 2.5 years. ResultsAt baseline, testosterone levels positively correlated with the number of previous major depressive episodes and suicide attempts. Cox proportional hazards regression analysis found that higher baseline testosterone levels predicted suicide attempts during the follow-up period. LimitationsA limitation of the study is that the sample size is modest. Another limitation is that we did not have a bipolar nonattempter or healthy volunteer control group for comparison. ConclusionTestosterone levels may predict suicidal behavior in women with bipolar disorder.