12.08.10
People with severe mental illness 12 times more likely to commit suicide
People with psychotic disorders, such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, are 12 times more likely to commit suicide than average, according to research released today by King’s Health Partners.
The research found that the rate of suicide was highest in the first year following diagnosis (12 times national average) and that high risk persisted – remaining four times greater than the general population ten years after diagnosis, a time when there may be less intense clinical monitoring of risk.
Neither the risk of suicide nor the long-term risk of suicide, as compared to the general population, have been studied and measured in this way before. And the findings show that doctors must always remain vigilant when assessing a patient’s risk of suicide regardless of time since first diagnosis.
A key aim of the study was to challenge the widely held view that “10-15% of people suffering psychotic disorders are likely to commit suicide”. This study shows that these figures, largely derived from research in the 1970s, are misleading as they use crude measurement techniques and do not accurately measure risk over a lifetime. Today’s findings indicate a lower overall risk, but more persistent danger of suicide among this patient group over a lifetime.
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