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Self-cutting: patient characteristics compared with self-poisoners
Keith Hawton1, Louise Harriss, Sue Simkin
1Centre for Suicide Research, Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Warneford Hospital, Headington, Oxford OX3 7JX, UK. keith.hawton@psychiatry.ox.ac.uk
Suicide & Life-Threatening Behavior
|September 24, 2004
Summary
Self-cutting patients were more often male and had prior self-harm history compared to self-poisoning patients. This challenges existing literature and suggests differing treatment needs for self-harm methods.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Public Health
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Deliberate self-harm is a significant public health concern.
- Understanding the distinct characteristics of different self-harm methods is crucial for targeted interventions.
- Previous literature suggested self-cutting is more prevalent in females presenting to general hospitals.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the demographic and clinical characteristics of patients who self-cut versus self-poison in a UK general hospital over 23 years.
- To identify trends and differences between self-cutting and self-poisoning patient groups across two time periods.
- To challenge existing assumptions regarding the gender distribution in self-cutting incidents.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of a large, consecutive sample (n=14,892) of deliberate self-harm patients presenting to a UK general hospital.
- Comparison of self-cutting (n=428) and self-poisoning (n=11,065) groups across two distinct time periods (1976-1988 and 1988-1998).
- Exclusion of patients with multiple methods or those not assessed by psychiatric services.
Main Results:
- Self-cutting patients were consistently more likely to be male and have a history of previous deliberate self-harm in both time periods.
- In the later period, self-cutters were also more likely to live alone, misuse alcohol, and report lower suicidal intent.
- The study found an excess of males among self-cutters, contradicting the prevailing literature.
Conclusions:
- The demographic and clinical profiles of self-cutting and self-poisoning patients differ significantly.
- The higher proportion of males among self-cutters challenges established perceptions and highlights a potential underestimation of this group in research.
- These findings underscore the need for tailored treatment approaches based on the specific method of self-harm employed.