Prospective Study of Risk Factors for Attempted Suicide Among Patients With Bipolar Disorder

The authors conducted a prospective study to investigate risk for suicide attempts among a secondary-level sample of psychiatric in- & outpatients with bipolar disorder. 1,630 patients from three Finnish cities were screened. Information on suicide attempts was obtained for 176 patients at the 6-month follow-up & for 160 patients at the 18-month follow-up. During the 18-month follow-up, 20% of patients (35/176) attempted suicide. In a Cox regression model, baseline previous suicide attempts, hopelessness, depressive phase at index episode, & younger age at intake were independent risk factors for suicide attempts during follow-up, whereas factors such as bipolar I or II, or comorbidity did not reach statistical significance. (31 refs.)