Abstract
Background: Although substance misuse is a key risk factor in suicide, relatively little is known about the relationship between lifetime misuse and misuse at the time of suicide.
Aims: To examine the relationship between substance misuse and subsequent suicide.
Method: Linkage of coroners' reports to primary care records for 403 suicides occurring over 2 years.
Results: With alcohol misuse, 67% of the cohort had previously sought help for alcohol problems and 39% were intoxicated at the time of suicide. Regarding misuse of other substances, 54% of the cohort was tested. Almost one in four (38%) tested positive, defined as an excess of drugs over the prescribed therapeutic dosage and/or detection of illicit substances. Those tested were more likely to be young and have a history of drug misuse.
Conclusions: A deeper understanding of the relationship between substance misuse and suicide could contribute to prevention initiatives. Furthermore, standardised toxicology screening processes would avoid diminishing the importance of psychosocial factors involved in suicide as a 'cause of death'.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 292 |
| Number of pages | 6 |
| Journal | The British Journal of Psychiatry |
| Volume | 208 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| Early online date | 11 May 2015 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Nov 2015 |
Keywords
- Mental health
- suicide
- help-seeking
- alcohol
- drugs
- substance misuse
Access to Document
- Substance misuse in life and death in a 2-year cohort of suicides
© 2015 The Royal College of Psychiatrists This is an author-produced electronic version of an article accepted for publication in the British Journal of Psychiatry. The definitive publisher-authenticated version is available online at http://bjp.rcpsych.org.
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Profiles
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Karen Galway
- School of Nursing and Midwifery - Senior Lecturer
- Centre for Evidence and Social Innovation
Person: Academic