First Suicide Attempts in Early Adolescents: A Descriptive Outcomes Study.

Area of Science:

• Adolescent psychiatry
• Suicidology
• Public health

Background:

• Suicide is a leading cause of death for early adolescents (10-14 years).
• Research on suicidal behavior in this age group is limited.
• This study examines characteristics of early adolescents experiencing their first suicide attempt.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate prior psychiatric care, methods used, and outcomes of first suicide attempts in early adolescents.
• To identify risk factors and inform prevention strategies for adolescent suicide.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of a cohort of 164 early adolescents (10-14 years) from a larger retrospective-prospective study.
• Data collected on index suicide attempts (IA) over a 22-year period (1986-2007).
• Examined demographics, prior psychiatric history, attempt methods, and medical/psychiatric outcomes.

Main Results:

• 1.8% of early adolescent index attempters died by suicide.
• Nearly half had no prior psychiatric history; females were less likely to have received prior mental health care.
• Medication overdose was the most common method for females (63.3%), while males used cutting/piercing (36.1%).
• Among survivors, 19.9% required medical hospitalization, and over half (52.8%) required psychiatric hospitalization.

Conclusions:

• Medication overdoses are a significant method for early adolescent suicide attempts, particularly among females.
• While mortality was low, morbidity was substantial, with many requiring hospitalization.
• Emphasizes the need for early identification of at-risk youth and means restriction to prevent suicide attempts.