[Suicidal Ideation in the Adult Population of Chile: Prevalence and Associated Factors Across the Life Course]

Having updated data on the prevalence of suicidal ideation and its associated factors is essential to guide preventive strategies.

to examine the prevalence and relationship between sociodemographic factors, health indicators, and substance use with suicidal ideation in a community sample of adults in Chile.

A secondary analysis of data from 19,989 adult residents in urban areas of Chile, extracted from the National Survey of Health, Sexuality and Gender 2022-2023, was performed. The survey included sociodemographic information, health indicators, substance use, and suicidal ideation during lifetime and in the last 12 months. Logistic regression models stratified by age were used, for which three groups were defined: emerging adulthood (18 to 29 years), middle adulthood (30 to 59 years), and older persons (60 years or more).

The prevalence of suicidal ideation was 17.4% during life and 5.2% in the last 12 months, being higher in women, emerging adults, and residents of the macro-zones south and the Metropolitan Region. The variables that presented the strongest statistically significant association with suicidal ideation in the three age groups were having a history of depression (lifetime ideation adjusted Odds Ratio [ORa]≥4.54; 12-month ORa≥3.72) and presenting current symptoms of anxiety and/or depression (lifetime ORa≥2.62; 12-month ORa≥3.34). The rest of the variables showed an association with suicidal ideation depending on the age group. For all groups, an inverse relationship was observed between self-perceived quality of life (ORa≤0.64) and self-perceived health with suicidal ideation (ORa≤0.59).

a high prevalence of suicidal ideation and similarities and differences in the factors associated with suicidal ideation were observed among the different age groups.