Clinical characteristics of suicidal behavior in an intensive care unit at a university hospital in Japan: A 7-year observational study.

Abstract

Suicidal behavior accounts for at least 40,000 admissions per year to emergency departments in Japan; however, little is known about emergency admissions owing to suicidal behavior in metropolitan areas. Therefore, we examined the clinical characteristics of suicidal behavior using psychosocial assessments performed by experienced psychiatrists in an intensive care unit. Participants were 971 patients admitted to a university hospital's intensive care unit for suicidal behavior between July 2006 and June 2013. Physicians and psychiatrists regularly assessed the participants using a standard data extraction form while the participants were in the intensive care unit. As suicidal behavior involving drug overdose is generally less fatal than other methods, we predicted that clinical characteristics would differ between patients with and without overdose. We classified participants into drug overdose or other method groups (ns=732 and 239, respectively) to compare suicide methods. In the overdose group, participants' median age was approximately 5 years lower, and the following proportions were larger: female participants (77%) and participants with borderline personality disorders (21% vs. 10%), no clear suicidal ideation (30% vs. 15%), impulsively attempted self-harm (86% vs. 62%), and interpersonal problems (26% vs. 16%). Ameliorating interpersonal problems and improving stress coping skills would benefit people who attempt suicide via overdose.