Risk for Suicide in Schizophrenia and Other Psychotic and Nonpsychotic Disorders

This study assessed 586 psychiatric patients to find risk factors for suicide. The authors found schizophrenia & other psychotic patients were more likely to commit suicide in the first 6 years after their initial hospitalization than nonpsychotic patients. Also, psychotic patients were at greater risk for suicide if they were unmarried, white, had a high IQ, were male patients with a more gradual onset of their disorder, & were of “chronic” Research Diagnostic Criteria subtypes. (VM)