Suicide attempts in over 60 years old patients

Abstract

Aims:

To study the characteristics of the population attended in the Service of Urgencies of a General Hospital with a suicide attempt, and particulary characteristics of patients' subgroup of sixty or more years in comparison with the rest of patients.

Methods:

Of all urgencies attended by psychiatry in the year 2003 in our hospital we selected those in which consultation motive was suicide attempt. In all of them were analyzed following variables: age, sex, psychiatric history, previous history of suicide attempts, need of income and suicide method used. Characteristics of patients over 60 years old were analyzed, comparing them with the rest of patients.

Results:

Middle age of the sample (n=286) were 35,7 years, 26 patients (9,1%) were 60 years or more. Among elders 46,2% was men and 53,8% women. 81% of elders had some psychiatric diagnosis (77% the rest of patients), most frequent was depression. Two (7,7%) of 26 elder patients had some personality disorder, opposite to 19,5% of other patients. 65,4% of elders committed suicide attempt by drugs ingestion, more employees were benzodiazepines (47,4%). All elders attended by suicide attempt needed to be income.

Conclusions:

In over 60-year-old people psychiatric comorbidity is more frequent that in the rest of patients who commit suicide attempt, though personality disorders are minor. Method used does not differ from rest of patients. There is frequent these patients need to income.