Strategies for the prevention of suicide: emphasis on suicide attempters with concurrent psychiatric disorder
Suicide is a major public health problem showing an increased trend in most countries. Among risk factors for suicide, the most powerful predictors are: psychiatric disorder and previous suicide attempt (particularly serious or violent).
20% of those who attempt suicide will repeat the act, and 2% will succeed over one-year period. Suicide rarely occurs in the absence of psychiatric disorder. Affective disorders (depressive type), alcoholism, schizophrenia and drug abuse were found to be the diagnoses predominently associated with completed suicide.
The aim of our paper on strategies for the prevention of suicide is to present the recent knowledge on suicidal prevention with special emphasis on interventions in suicide attempters with concurrent psychiatric disorder.
The cardinal role of psychiatrists among other mental health professionals in suicide prevention is stressed.
V.P. Kontaxakis
Department of Psychiatry, University of Athens
"Eginition" Hospital, Athens
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