High Social Class and Suicide in Persons at Risk for Schizophrenia

Children of women with severe schizophrenia were assessed in 1962. In 2005, when subjects were a mean age of 58 years, the authors identified those who had died by suicide. A higher rate of suicide was associated with risk for schizophrenia in the High-Risk sample. Higher social class origin was associated with suicide in persons at risk for mental illness. Higher social class origin was associated with suicide in subjects at genetic risk for schizophrenia (but not those without risk). (24 refs.)