Prevalence of suicidal ideation and self-harm behaviours in children aged 12 years and younger: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background Suicide in children is a pressing public health concern. The increasing number of deaths by suicide and emergency visits for suicidal ideation and self-harm in children might not be fully representative; it is likely that many more children are in distress but do not seek out help. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis […]

Suicide within five years of hospital-treated self-harm: A data linkage cohort study

Background Hospital-treated self-harm is a strong predictor of suicide and hospital contacts may include missed opportunities for suicide prevention. We conducted a data linkage study to identify factors associated with suicide in people treated in hospital for self-harm in Victoria, Australia. Method We undertook a cohort study following 14,307 people treated in hospital for an […]

What do my (online) friends think? A topic modeling approach to identifying patterns of response to self-injurious behaviors on Reddit

Objective Approximately 17% of adolescents and young adults will engage in non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) at least once in their lifetime, leading the World Health Organization to identify self-injury as one of the top five public health concerns for adolescents. Despite the widespread prevalence of this behavior, NSSI continues to be heavily stigmatized in both medical […]

Picturing self-harm: Investigating flash-forward mental imagery as a proximal and modifiable driver of non-suicidal self-injury

Objectives Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) is theorized to be reinforced by its emotional consequences. Mental images of NSSI are commonly reported as occurring prior to NSSI. Based on the known functional properties of anticipatory mental imagery as an emotional and motivational amplifier, this study investigated whether NSSI mental imagery constitutes a proximal and dynamic mechanism underpinning […]

The journey of engaging with web-based self-harm and suicide content: Longitudinal qualitative study

Background: Self-harm and suicide are major public health concerns worldwide, with attention focused on the web environment as a helpful or harmful influence. Longitudinal research on self-harm and suicide–related internet use is limited, highlighting a paucity of evidence on long-term patterns and effects of engaging with such content. Objective: This study explores the experiences of […]

The journey of engaging with web-based self-harm and suicide content: Longitudinal qualitative study

Background: Self-harm and suicide are major public health concerns worldwide, with attention focused on the web environment as a helpful or harmful influence. Longitudinal research on self-harm and suicide–related internet use is limited, highlighting a paucity of evidence on long-term patterns and effects of engaging with such content. Objective: This study explores the experiences of […]

Possible mental health interventions for family members of a close relative who has suicidal thoughts or committed suicide: A pilot project at a mental health center

Background: Suicides are an actual issue, especially in Lithuania, where, despite significant efforts, the number of suicides remains very high. In cases of suicide, society painfully loses its members, and the relatives of the person  who committed suicide, engaged in self-harm, or attempted suicide face many negative experiences. Methods: The purpose of this article is […]

Intimate partner violence, suicide and self-harm in Sri Lanka: Analysis of national data

There is increasing evidence from South Asia and internationally that intimate partner violence (IPV) is strongly associated with self-harm, however its association with suicide and self-harm has not been extensively examined, nor has this relationship been explored at a national level. Using national datasets, area-level variation in IPV, suicide and self-harm in Sri Lanka were […]

Trajectories and predictors of change in emotion dysregulation and deliberate self-harm amongst adolescents with borderline features

Background Deliberate self-harm (DSH) and emotion dysregulation (ED) peaks in adolescence, and is associated with an increased risk of psychopathology, suicide and lower functioning in adulthood. DBT-A has been established as an effective treatment for reducing DSH, however less is known about changes in emotion dysregulation. This study aimed to identify baseline predictors of treatment […]

Role of individual deprivation and community-level deprivation on suicidal behaviors: Insights from the UK Biobank study

Introduction This study aimed to investigate the impact of individual- and community-level deprivation on suicidal behaviors among community members. Methods Data from 350,884 UK Biobank participants were employed to construct an individual deprivation index. Absolute poverty was defined as a pre-tax annual household income below ₤18,000. Predictors for absolute poverty incorporated variables such as sex, […]

Are we using the right evidence to inform suicide prevention in low- and middle-income countries? An umbrella review

Objective: Suicide disproportionately affects low- and middle- income countries and evidence regarding prevention approaches developed in high income countries may not be applicable in these settings. We conducted an umbrella review to assess whether the conclusions of suicide prevention systematic reviews accurately reflect the studies contained within those reviews in terms of setting generalizability. Methods: […]

Widening excess mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic in individuals who self-harmed: A whole-population-based e-cohort study in Wales, UK, April 2016-March 2021

Background: Studies on COVID-19 pandemic-associated changes in mortality following self-harm remain scarce and inconclusive. Aims: To compare mortality risks in individuals who had self-harmed to those for individuals who had not, before and during the COVID-19 pandemic (Waves 1 and 2) in Wales, the United Kingdom, using population-based routinely collected data. Method: We linked whole population health data to all-cause […]

Self-harm by nurses and midwives: A study of hospital presentations

Background: Nursing professionals are an occupational group at increased risk of suicide, but little is known about self-harm in this population. Aims: To investigate the characteristics of nurses and midwives who present to hospital following self-harm. Method: We used data from the Oxford Monitoring System for Self-Harm to identify nurses and midwives who presented to the general hospital […]

The cost-effectiveness of psychosocial interventions following self-harm in Australia

Background: Psychosocial interventions following self-harm in adults, in particular cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), can be effective in lowering the risk of repeated self-harm. Aims: To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of CBT for reducing repeated self-harm in the Australian context. Method: The current study adopted the accessing cost-effectiveness (ACE) approach using return-on-investment (ROI) analysis. Uncertainty and sensitivity analyses (Sas) tested the robustness […]

Advancing early detection of suicide? A national study examining socio-demographic factors, antecedent stressors and long-term history of self-harm

Background A range of factors including mental disorders, adverse events and history of self-harm are associated with suicide risk. Further examination is needed of the characteristics of suicides which occur without established risk factors, using national surveillance systems. Methods Data on all suicides in Ireland from 2015 to 2017 were drawn from the Irish Probable Suicide […]

Frequent callers to crisis helplines: Who are they and why do they call?

Objective: Frequent callers present a challenge for crisis helplines, which strive to achieve optimal outcomes for all callers within finite resources. This study aimed to describe frequent callers to Lifeline (the largest crisis helpline in Australia) and compare them with non-frequent callers, with a view to furthering knowledge about models of service delivery that might meet […]

‘Am I really the priority here?’: Help-seeking experiences of university students who self-harmed

Background Self-harm is a significant problem in university students because of its association with emotional distress, physical harm, broader mental health issues and potential suicidality. Research suggests that fewer than half of students who have self-harmed seek professional help when at university. Aims This study aimed to explore the help-seeking journeys of university students who […]

‘One Is Too Many’ preventing self-harm and suicide in military veterans: A quantitative evaluation

Introduction In 2021, the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust allocated over £2 million to programmes designed to have a clear and demonstrable impact on suicide prevention. Four grant holders delivered a combination of psychotherapeutic interventions, group activities, social prescribing, peer support mentoring, life skills coaching, educational courses and practical help with housing and employment. The evaluation […]

Testing suicide ideation-to-action theory differences among those with nonsuicidal self-injury

Objective Individuals with recent nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) are at elevated risk for suicide but our understanding of the factors that impact the emergence of suicidal ideation and/or suicide attempts in this group is limited. The current study aimed to evaluate whether the processes identified by existing ideation-to-action theories of suicide apply within this subgroup. Method […]

Coping self-efficacy and thoughts of self-harm among adolescents in Vietnam: A longitudinal study

We aimed to determine the effect of coping self-efficacy on thoughts of self-harm among adolescents attending high school in Hanoi, Vietnam. Longitudinal data were collected using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale Revised and the Coping Self-Efficacy Scale among 552 Year 10 students. The prevalence of thoughts of death and/or self-injury on at least […]

Unveiling adolescent suicidality: Holistic analysis of protective and risk factors using multiple machine learning algorithms

Adolescent suicide attempts are on the rise, presenting a significant public health concern. Recent research aimed at improving risk assessment for adolescent suicide attempts has turned to machine learning. But no studies to date have examined the performance of stacked ensemble algorithms, which are more suitable for low-prevalence conditions. The existing machine learning-based research also […]

The role of alcohol use in pesticide suicide and self‑harm: A scoping review

Purpose: Suicide and self-harm by pesticide self-poisoning is common in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Alcohol is an important risk factor for self-harm; however, little is known about its role in pesticide self-poisoning. This scoping review explores the role that alcohol plays in pesticide self-harm and suicide. Methods: The review followed the Joanna Briggs Institute scoping review […]

The burden of attempted hanging and drowning presenting to hospitals in Ireland between 2007 and 2019: A national registry‑based study

Purpose: To measure the impact of hospital-treated self-harm by hanging and drowning in Ireland in 2007-2019 and identify risk factors for these methods of self-harm. Method: Data on all self-harm presentations to Irish hospitals between 2007 and 2019 were obtained from the National Self-Harm Registry Ireland, a national self-harm surveillance system. Multinomial regression was used to explore […]