Retrospective Evaluation of Adolescent Patients Presenting to the Emergency Department with Suicidal Attempt

Abstract

Objective: Suicide attempts among adolescents are a major public health problem. It is important to understand the prevalence of suicide attempts in the adolescent population and the risk factors underlying the attempts so that the necessary precautions can be taken by health authorities. We therefore aimed to retrospectively evaluate the demographic and clinical characteristics of adolescent patients presented to the emergency department due to suicide attempts. Materials and Methods: This retrospective observational study included adolescent patients aged 10-19 years who presented to the emergency department for suicide attempt between August 01, 2018 and July 31, 2023. Ethics committee approval was obtained and data were collected from the hospital automation system through ICD codes. Demographic data, clinical characteristics, intervention methods, treatment processes and outcomes of the patients were analysed in detail. Results: Of the 126 patients included in the study, 80.2% were female, 19.8% were male, and the mean age was 184 months. 97.6% of the patients attempted suicide by ingestion of drugs or substances, and the rest of the patients preferred methods such as jumping from a height, firearm and sharp instrument use. Depression was the most common comorbid psychiatric disorder and was identified in 73.7% of the adolescents in the study. 42.1% of the patients presented to the emergency department with other complaints along with the suicide attempt. Treatments such as gastric lavage and activated charcoal were administered in the majority of admissions. Conclusions: This study reveals that suicide attempts are an important public health problem in the adolescent population and psychiatric disorders, especially depression, play a role in these attempts. It was observed that suicide attempts were more common among adolescent females. The findings emphasise the importance of early screening and interventions for the prevention and management of suicide attempts in adolescents. The findings of the study shed light on efforts to review and improve current management strategies and demonstrate the need for large-scale community-based studies.