Suicidal behaviour in old age - results from the Ibadan study of ageing

BMC Psychiatry

Research Article

Taiwo Abiona¹  Akin Ojagbemi²  Oye Gureje²  Bibilola Oladeji² 

[1] Department of Preventive Medicine and Primary Care, Faculty of Clinical Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, P.M.B 5017, Ibadan, GPO, Nigeria;Department of psychiatry, College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, P.M.B 5017, Ibadan, GPO, Nigeria;

关键词: Suicide;    Suicidal ideation;    Aged;    Social isolation;   

DOI  :  10.1186/1471-244X-13-80

 received in 2012-11-02, accepted in 2013-02-25,  发布年份 2013

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundAn important reason for the high risk of suicide in the elderly is the determination with which they act out their suicidal thoughts. Early identification of suicidal behaviours in the elderly is therefore important for suicide prevention efforts in this population.MethodData are from the Ibadan Study of Ageing (ISA), a household multi-stage probability sample of 2149 Yoruba Nigerians aged 65 years or older conducted between 2003 and 2004. We used the third version of the World Health Organization (WHO) Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) to explore suicidal experiences and behaviours. In this report, only those experiences or behaviours reported to have occurred after the age of 65 years are the focus of analysis. Derived weights were applied to the data in accordance with the study design and associations were explored using logistic regression. The results are presented as odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals.ResultIn all, 4.0% (95% C.I= 3.1-4.2) of the subjects had suicidal ideation occurring after the age of 65 years, while 0.7% (95% C.I=0.4-1.3) and 0.2% (95% C.I= 0.1-0.4) reported suicidal plans and attempts, respectively. There was a significantly elevated likelihood of suicidal ideation among persons who had experienced spousal separation through death or divorce (O.R=4.9., 95% C.I= 1.5-15) or who were residing in rural settings (O.R=2.5, 95% C.I=1.3-4.8).ConclusionSuicidal ideation is common among the elderly. About 20% and 6% of those with ideation proceed to plans and attempts, respectively. Circumstances of social isolation and exclusion are important correlates of suicidal behaviour in the elderly.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© Ojagbemi et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 2013