Postdischarge Risk for Suicide Has Changed over Time

And not for the better, according to a meta-analysis of studies with a half-century of data

Patients' heightened risks for suicide after discharge from psychiatric hospitals have long concerned clinicians. To examine changes in this risk over time, researchers conducted a meta-analysis of 100 studies involving psychiatric facilities on five continents and published between 1946 and 2016. The 183 samples of patients included adolescents, adults, older patients, and those in long-term and forensic facilities.

Almost 18,000 postdischarge suicides occurred in 4.7 million person-years. The pooled suicide rate was 484/100,000 person-years, 44 times the WHO's estimated global suicide rate. Suicide rates were highest in studies with 3-month postdischarge data (1132/100,000 person-years) and remained elevated at >10-year follow-ups (277/100…

Reviewing Author

Steven Dubovsky, MD

Disclosures

Grant/Research SupportTower Foundation; Patrick Lee Foundation; Boehringer Ingelheim; Intra-Cellular Therapies; Janssen; Biogen; Allergan

Editorial BoardsMind and Brain; Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic; Current Psychiatry; Journal of Psychosomatic Research

Steven Dubovsky, MD

Disclosures

Grant/Research SupportTower Foundation; Patrick Lee Foundation; Boehringer Ingelheim; Intra-Cellular Therapies; Janssen; Biogen; Allergan

Editorial BoardsMind and Brain; Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic; Current Psychiatry; Journal of Psychosomatic Research

Postdischarge Risk for Suicide Has Changed over Time

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Reviewing Author