Does Asthma Increase the Odds of Suicidal Thoughts, Plans, and Attempts?

Abstract

Background Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways affecting more than 250 million people worldwide. In the past, a possible relationship between asthma and suicidality has been hypothesized. However, further research is required as this link has not been clearly established. Our objective was to use propensity score matching to answer the following research question: does having asthma increase one's odds of developing suicidality throughout their lifetime and, if so, how large is this increase? Methodology We utilized data from the 2018 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. We analyzed the relationship between currently having asthma and having had suicidal thoughts, suicide plans, and suicide attempts over the past 12 months. Chi-square analyses were performed both before and after completing propensity score matching. Results Before matching, it was found that, compared to individuals without asthma, asthmatic individuals had 31.2% higher odds of having suicidal thoughts (p = 0.010) and 97.4% higher odds of a suicide attempt (p = 0.012). After controlling for confounders by matching, there was no longer a relationship between having asthma and suicidal thoughts (p = 0.707), suicidal plans (p = 0.523), and suicidal attempts (p = 0.260). Conclusions These findings highlight that while asthma may appear to be associated with suicidality, this association does not persist after controlling for confounding factors. Hence, it is recommended that more research be conducted on this topic and that possible confounders be further researched. In particular, there is a need to better understand the role of social determinants and other contributors to health outcomes.