Resource Tag: GERMANY

This 4-6 year prospective follow-up study compared 48 reactive depressives with & 24 without suicide attempts before index admission. Both groups showed a favourable course & outcome concerning psychiatric diagnoses, psychopathology, social integration, & social functioning as well as displaying a nearly identical course & outcome. In both groups, 2 patients made suicide attempts during […]

Combining legal, social, & political history, this article contributes to a more thorough understanding of the changing relationship between Nazi concentration camps as places of extra-legal terror & the judiciary, between Nazi terror & the law. It is argued the conflict between the judiciary & the SS was not a conflict between good & evil […]

This study assessed the proportion of survivors of railway suicide & compared survivors & decedents in terms of personal characteristics & temporal patterns to identify potential differences. A total of 5731 suicide victims listed in the German central railway registry of person accidents over the period 1997-2002 & satisfying an operational definition of suicidal behaviour […]

The hypothesis that there was an increase in the number of psychiatric patient suicides was examined. Data from 5 psychiatric hospitals/departments in Baden-Wurttemberg were recorded for the period, 1970-1992. Log-linear time-trend models tested several hypotheses, compared their goodness of fit, & corrected for related factors. Results showed that the model of a constant number of […]

This study assessed the association among various childhood adversities & suicide attempts. A total of 575 patients of a psychosomatic clinic & general practitioners were examined by use of a structured interview. 17 percent of the sample reported a past suicide attempt. In particular, sexual abuse & harsh physical punishment were associated with an increased […]

This study evaluated time trends in suicide mortality by method in Germany over the period 1991-2002. 145,865 suicides of individuals aged 15 years & older & with information about method were recorded. 7 suicide methods were defined based on these data. The most frequent method in both genders was hanging/strangulation/suffocation. Statistically significant declines were observed […]

The authors investigated if the estimated suicide risk for axis I disorders & sociodemographic factors was modified by personality disorders. Psychiatric disorders were evaluated by psychological autopsy in 163 suicide victims & by personal interview in 396 population-based controls. Personality disorders modify suicide risk differently for affective disorders, substance use disorders, smoking, life events during […]

When comparisons are made between American & European police officers, the results of the studies are often contradictory. This chapter describes & discusses a study of police suicides in Germany in order to provide a baseline of comparison. JA

This study determined whether the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene or its high-affinity receptor gene, receptor tyrosine kinase 2 (NTRK2), confer risk for suicide attempts & major depressive disorder by investigating common genetic variants in these loci. The discovery sample was 394 depressed patients, of whom 113 had attempted suicide, & 366 matched healthy controls. […]

A total of 624 consecutive gunshot autopsies from the Institutes of Legal Medicine in Munster & Hamburg were investigated retrospectively. In a subsample of 284 suicides & 293 homicides, a large variety of features such as firearm, ammunition, number & site of entrance wounds, shooting distance, & direction of the internal bullet path were recorded […]

33 suicide victims & 3759 controls in a sample of patients with mono- or bipolar depression were compared with respect to 77 sociodemographic & anamnestic variables & 195 standardised items of the admission summary. The suicide rate of patients with depressive psychosis was 2.7 times higher than the average rate of 0.324% for the entire […]

From each case of suicide & drug-related death autopsied in the Institute of Forensic Medicine, Munich during the years 2001-2005, a toxicological investigation for antidepressants was performed. In 180 suicides & 72 narcotic drug deaths, antidepressants were detected. There were serious differences in the frequency of antidepressants with respect to the manner of suicide. The […]

50 German patients with social anxiety disorders & 120 healthy controls were investigated using a retrospective interview with 203 questions. Compared to controls, patients described their parents’ rearing styles as significantly more unfavourable. Patients reported higher rates of psychiatric disorders in their families in general, in particular anxiety disorders, depression, & suicidality. The present data […]

65 consecutive cases of suicide by sharp force in Munster, Germany were investigated by evaluating autopsy & prosecution department records. Suicides constituted 17% of all fatalities from sharp force autopsied between 1967-1996. Young males & persons with a psychiatric history predominated among those who chose this method. (29 refs.) JA

During an intense 4-level community-based intervention program in Nuremberg in 2001-2002, the number of suicidal acts (attempts & deaths) dropped significantly, a significant effect compared with the baseline year & the control region of Wuerzburg. To assess the sustainability of the intervention effects, the number of suicidal acts was assessed in 2003, after the termination […]

Out of 138 clearly defined gunshot suicides which were autopsied at the Institute of Legal Medicine in Munster, 11 persons fired 2 or more gunshots to the body. A general classification is derived from the literature & illustrated by the cases presented. A thorough post-mortem can exclude or quantify the potential for physical activity. Typical […]

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In this letter to the editor, the authors describe their study in which they tried to replicate the results of Schurhoff et al’s (2000) research that found an early age of onset in manic-depressive illness to be an indicator of a more severe phenotype that went along with a higher familial loading. Schulze et al […]

Prevalence & risk factors for inpatient suicide & suicide attempts in a German psychiatric hospital were explored. 20,543 patients with 40,451 episodes of inpatient care (1995-2004) were included. 41 inpatient suicides were recorded. Risk of inpatient suicide was increased for patients with resistance to drug treatments, previous suicide attempt, severe side effects, & supportive psychotherapy […]

This presentation discussed the implementation of a psychiatric crisis intervention centre in connection with an existing psychiatric outpatient department in Steglitz, Germany. The set-up, structure, mode of operation, & possibilities for follow-up treatment or arrangement of further treatment were also discussed. The presentation concluded by raising the question of whether psychiatric treatment facilities would be […]

In October 1976, a psychiatric crisis intervention center was set up in the Steglitz Medical Center, Berlin. Over a 2-year period, 621 patients were registered with indications for clinical psychiatric crisis intervention. Data was collected on age, gender, diagnoses, proposed treatment, & length of hospitalization. A hypothesis was tested of whether there is a correlation […]

Epidemiological data on suicide & attempted suicide in Mannheim was discussed in this presentation. Ecological data for a 13-year period, 1966-1978, was analyzed. The strength & direction of correlations between attempted suicide rates & ecological properties of social disintegration varied with the level of the ecological unit. When streets & small neighbourhoods were studied, a […]