[Suicide prevention--recognizing and treating acute suicidal behavior]

Over the years, numerous models and working hypotheses have been developed in attempts to understand the underlying causes of suicide, and data on the frequency of certain risk factors are now available. Although a large number of institutions ranging from emergency telephone advice services to departments for crisis intervention are in place, the suicide rate remains distressingly high-in particular in certain high--risk groups such as patients suffering from chronic depression or an addiction. While physicians need to be aware that their influence too may be limited, they would do well always to keep in mind the particular risk factors and high-risk groups.