Depressive Episodes With Suicide Attempts in Severe Depression: Suicides and Controls Differ Only in the Later Episodes of Unipolar Depression

This study investigated the distribution of suicide attempts across the depressive episodes in suicides & controls with a severe depression. A blind record evaluation was performed of 100 sucide victims & matched controls admitted to the Department of Psychiatry between 1956-1969 & monitored to 2006. There was a similar number of episodes in suicides & controls & in the early episodes a similar number of suicide attempts in both groups. However, in the later episodes future suicides showed more suicide attempts as compared to controls. This was found for unipolar depression only. This difference was found despite previously shown similar rates of adequate treatment & improvement. (16 refs.) JA