Prevalence of suicide attempts and associated factors in patients with psychic disorder

Abstract

Introduction: Suicide is of great relevance to public health, being a multifactorial phenomenon that is often preceded by suicidal behaviors, with psychological disorders as risk factors. Objective: To describe the prevalence of attempted suicide and the associated factors in patients with mental disorders followed at the Psychosocial Care Center (CAPS) II. Methods: Quantitative, descriptive and analytical study with secondary data from 416 medical records of patients followed between January of 2005 and July of 2017 at the CAPS II patients in Petrolina, Pernambuco, Brazil, in 2017. Results: The female gender predominated in the sample (59.5%), most patients were married (62.5%) and not literate or with elementary education (52.7%). The average age of users who attempted suicide was 39.8 years. The factors that were associated with suicide attempts were sex, women had more suicide attempts (65.2%); extra CAPS hospitalization (p = 0.008) and suicidal ideation (p < 0.0001). Conclusion: The studied population was composed predominantly of women, illiterate or with elementary school, with a history of psychiatric hospitalization, suicidal ideation and attempted suicide. Still, there was a statistical association with the history of hospitalization in psychiatric hospitals and suicidal ideation with the attempted suicide. Knowing the factors associated with attempted suicide can be an important step in planning prevention strategies.