Suicide After TBI: Just the Tip of the Iceberg

A wealth of research over the past 20 years has demonstrated that traumatic brain injury (TBI) of all severities is associated with later psychiatric disorders. Other studies have documented post-TBI increases in suicide attempts. These findings might arise from the TBI itself or from the circumstances of, or reaction to, the injury (e.g., accidents, post-traumatic stress disorder). Focusing on suicide, researchers analyzed 1980–2014 data from a Danish registry of >7 million individuals.

The researchers categorized TBI as mild, skull fracture without documented TBI, or severe TBI with evidence of structural injury — making use of International Classification of Diseases codes but not standard TBI severity definitions. Analyses controlled for…