Suicidality in eating disorders: clinical and psychological correlates

Although many authors have described eating disorders as often being associated with suicidal feelings and behavior, few studies to date have evaluated the prevalence and characteristics of suicidal behaviour in eating disordered patients. In the present study, in which a consecutive series of 495 out-patients was studied, 13% of the patients reported at least one suicide attempt and 29% reported current suicidal ideation; 26% of attempters reported multiple attempts. A history of suicide attempt was more prevalent among binge-eating/purging anorexics and among purging bulimics than in the other subgroups. In cases with anorexia nervosa, suicide attempters were older, had a longer illness duration, weighed less, had more often used drugs and/or alcohol and tended to be more obsessive than non-attempters. In cases with bulimia nervosa, attempters presented with more psychiatric symptoms and had more frequently been sexually abused.