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Suicide and mental illness in the elderly.
1Department of Psychiatry II, BKH Günzburg, FRG.
Psychopathology
|January 1, 1989
Summary
Elderly suicide risk is independent of mental illness, though chronicity of illness, not acute psychopathology, may contribute. This finding aids in preventing and managing suicide in older adults.
Area of Science:
- Gerontology
- Psychiatry
- Public Health
Background:
- The elderly population faces a high risk of suicide.
- The relationship between suicide, aging, and mental illness requires clarification.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine if elderly suicide risk is linked to increased psychiatric morbidity.
- To assess the extent to which mental illness contributes to suicide in older adults.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of motives behind suicidal acts in 310 psychiatric in-patients.
- Multicenter study across 6 psychiatric hospitals in Germany.
Main Results:
- Age is an independent risk factor for suicide, not confounded by psychiatric morbidity.
- Mental illness alone is insufficient to explain suicide in the elderly.
- Motives related to chronicity of illness, rather than acute psychopathology, were more prevalent when mental illness was a factor.
Conclusions:
- Age is a significant, autonomous risk factor for suicide.
- Interventions should consider the chronicity of mental illness in older adults.
- Targeted strategies are needed for suicide prevention and management in the elderly.