Resources Library

Movement Therapy in the Treatment of Suicidal Patients

Suicide: Public Health and the Silence of the Heart

Editorial.

Liability for Patient’s Suicide

The Influence of Patient’s Personality on Adjustment to Chronic Dialysis

Personality type greatly influences a patient’s reaction to illness or disability. This study of 136 renal dialysis patients was conducted to gather information on the influence of personality in adjustment to chronic dialysis. Pre-dialysis personality assessment was followed up at 6,12,24 & 36 month intervals. It was found that all major aspects of adjustment could […]

The Dexamethasone Suppression Test in Suicidal Patients With Unipolar Depression

Of 49 newly hospitalized patients who met Research Diagnostic Criteria for primary unipolar depression & were given the dexamethasone suppression test (DST), significantly more patients admitted for attempted suicide attempts than nonsuicidal patients had abnormal DSTs. All 5 patients who made subseuent attempts (1 completed) within 6 months after admission had had abnormal DSTs. These […]

Helping the Suicidal Client: Some Aspects of Assessment and Treatment

Alcoholism, Alcohol Intoxication and Suicide Attempts

Records of patients admitted to a veteran’s hospital for treatment of self-inflicted wounds over a 15 year period were used for this study. Of the 34 patients, 29 were alcoholics, 2 were problem drinkers, & the rest, nonalcoholics. Two behavioral syndromes & a high incidence of amnesia & denial were identified & analyzed. A representative […]

Antidepressant Poisoning

Factitious Mourning: Painless Patienthood

Of 20 patients who falsely reported the deaths of loved ones in order to assume the patient role, most presented with depression & suicidal ideation. Many had histories of factitious physical symptoms, manipulative suicide attempts, substance abuse & sociopathy. The authors recommend early & repeated confrontations in a firm but nonjudgmental manner combined with referral […]

Suicide in a Psychiatric Emergency Room Population

22 suicides were identified in a series of 5,284 psychiatric emergency room patients, yielding a suicide rate of 111.1 per 100,000 “patient-years at risk”–more than 7 times the age & sex-adjusted rate for the general population. High risk subpopulations were whites, men, depressed & schizophrenic patients, substance abusers & patients with multiple emergency room visits. […]

The Psychodynamics of Near-Death Experiences

Deculturation as a Precipitant of Parasuicide in an Asian Group

The Durban Indian community has been described as an acculturating or a deculturating community. The processes of acculturation & deculturation are seen to lead to a transitional state of values & norms which causes psychological stresses within the community. Deviation from accepted cultural norms & comitant interpersonal disputes were major precipitating factors in parasuicidal acts […]

Near-Death Experiences and Personal Values

Near-death experiences reportedly foster value transformations & decrease suicidal ideation. Eighty-nine survivors of near-death experiences judged values related to material & social success as less important than did 175 control subjects. Decathexis of personal failures may account for the reported suicide-inhibiting effect.

Comments on “Environment Power Frequency Magnetic Fields and Suicide”

Letter to the editor.

Clinical Evaluation and Natural Course of Depression

Discusses clinical, diagnostic, & theoretical evaluations; diagnostic screens, inventories, & rating scales; biological markers and the natural course of depression. Age & culture seem to influence the course of depression. In addition to the classified clinical depressions, there is a considerable prevalence in the general population of depressive symptomatology & dysphoric states apparently related to […]

Excessive Use of Psychiatric Services by Suicidal Patients

The use of psychiatric services by patients with a suicidal history was examined to see if they placed a greater long-term burden on these services than other types of patient. Suicidal patients spent significantly more days in hospital and made more outpatient attendances; suicide attemptors in particular not only needed more emergency consultations but also […]

Suicide Attempts in Treated Opiate Addicts

Suicide Attempts by Hospitalized Medical and Surgical Patients

To characterize suicidal behavior among medical & surgical patients, all suicide attempts in the PBB Hospital were surveyed for 7 years. 17 nonfatal attempts occurred; all were impulsive & associated with stress (loss of emotional support) & disturbances of impulse control. Anger, not depression, was the affect most often seen before the attempts. 15 Patients […]

Suicides in San Mateo County

San Mateo County has an annual suicide rate of 17/100000. Females, widows & Asians are more prone to suicide than elsewhere. Alcohol was directly or indirectly involved in a significant number of instances. Many of the suicides were under a physician’s care at the time of death. There are probably important ecologic & sociologic variables […]

Chloroquine Intoxication

Discusses the treatment of massive overdoses of chloroquine phosphates. The lethal dose is estimated to be 50 mg. of chlorquine per kg. The suicide attempt case discussed noted the survival of a woman who had taken 82 mg. per kg. of body weight. Typical symptoms include convulsions, respiratory and cardiac arrest. Forced acid diuresis is […]

Short-Term Temporal Cycles in the Frequency of Suicide, United States, 1972-1978

Vital statistics data for the U.S. for the years 1972-1978 have been analyzed for variation in frequency of suicide by month, day of the week, day of the month and phase of the lunar cycle. Frequency of suicide showed a peak in the spring months, a lesser peak in the fall and was lowest in […]

Suicidal Attempts Made by Psychotic Children and Adolescents

Reviews 484 cases of suicide attempts among children and adolescents. Identifies types of psychiatric illness, male/female ratios, social group membership, reasons for the attempt, incidence of behavior change prior to attempt, and method used. Also provides a historical perspective. (JLH)

Jewish Attitude Toward Euthanasia

This article, by citing several examples, describes some legal attitudes toward euthanasia in various countries & presents in detail the Jewish attitude. The classification of euthanasia speaks of eugenic, active medical & passive medical euthanasia, also of the new term-antidysthanasia. The pros & cons, & the Catholic & Protestant approaches to the problem could not […]