Psychotic Symptoms Linked to Suicide Risk in Adolescents

Psychotic symptoms are a striking marker of suicide danger in adolescents, especially in those adolescents who demonstrate other types of psychiatric pathology as well. So reports a team of European researchers in JAMA Psychiatry.

This finding came as a surprise to the lead researcher, Ian Kelleher, M.D., Ph.D., a research fellow with the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. He told Psychiatric News, "While we knew that people with psychotic disorders are at high risk of suicidal behavior, we did not know that there was such a strong relationship between psychotic experiences (which are much more common than psychotic disorders) and suicidal behavior in the population."

"This is a very interesting study," said child and adolescent psychiatrist Kayla Pope, M.D., of Boys Town National Research Hospital in Nebraska, in an interview. "We need better markers for assessing suicide risk, and the finding in this study is an important step in that direction."

More information about suicide risks can be found in Psychiatric News here, here, and here. Information about suicide is also available in The American Psychiatric Publishing Textbook of Suicide Assessment and Management, Second Edition.

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