Health

Few studies in Brazil have evaluated the prevalence of mental disorders in suicide attempts, although they are a serious public health problem affecting more and more young people. Given this situation, researchers at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) decided to estimate the prevalence of mental disorders in cases of attempted suicide treated at a hospital emergency public in Rio de Janeiro. Within a year, the hospital attended 106 of these cases, of which 96 were interviewed by researchers. The study results were published in Cadernos de Saúde Pública Fiocruz.

According to the article, 62.5% of patients were female, 55.2% were between 25 and 49 years, 44.8% were single, 66.7% had low educational level and 35.4% had formal employment. In addition, 51.0% had a history of previous suicide attempts, 44.8% had undergone psychiatric or psychological treatment, 40.6% used psychoactive drugs regularly and 35.4% were under the influence of alcohol or drugs at the time of trial. Patients tried to take their own lives, mainly through the ingestion of drugs (39.6%) or pesticide 'pellet' (33.3%).

The prevalence of mental disorders among respondents was 71.9%. "The overall rate found in our study is closer to that of surveys conducted in countries such as Israel, Fiji and India, which showed an overall rate of mental disorders ranging from 53% to 64%. Studies conducted in European and American countries found rates close to 90%, comparing the authors write. The most prevalent disorders among patients in the study of UFRJ were: major depressive episode (35.4%), abuse / dependence of psychoactive substances (21.9%), posttraumatic stress disorder (20.8%), abuse / alcohol dependence (17.7%) and schizophrenia (15.6%). It stands out, though, that 25% of respondents had two or more disorders.

Although cases of attempted suicide treated at hospital in Rio were mostly women, the prevalence of mental disorders was higher among male patients. "One possible explanation points to the hypothesis already described that a depressive syndrome in men that this would be different in women. This syndrome is characterized by psychiatric symptoms such as low tolerance to stress, low impulse control, low self-esteem, alcoholism and suicide, "say the authors in the article. "Another possibility would be the fact that men are slow to seek medical help, finding itself with more severe mental disorders," they add.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2000 there were about 1 million deaths by suicide, while the number of suicide attempts may be up to 20 times higher. It is estimated that every 40 seconds a person dies in the world due to the suicide problem that is among the top three causes of death in people between 15 and 44 years. The same age, injuries or trauma resulting from suicide attempts are the sixth leading cause of health problems and physical disability. "In addition to access to treatment of mental disorders, public policies are needed that emphasize the control of resources and social responses to the reduction of suicidal behavior, the researchers recommend.



Source: Agência Fiocruz de Notícias