FREQUENCY OF SUICIDAL IDEATION IN DIAGNOSED CASES OF SCHIZOPHRENIA
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.71000/y91ede07Keywords:
Schizophrenia, , Suicidal Ideation, Mental Disorder, Beck Depression Inventory, Body Mass Index, Occupational Groups, Suicide PreventionAbstract
Background: Schizophrenia is a chronic psychiatric disorder associated with high morbidity and premature mortality, with suicide being a major contributor. Globally, 20% to 40% of individuals with schizophrenia attempt suicide at least once in their lifetime. Despite the severity of this concern, limited research has been conducted locally to assess the burden of suicidal ideation among individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia. This study aims to address this gap and support future preventive strategies and interventions.
Objective: To determine the frequency of suicidal ideation in patients diagnosed with schizophrenia presenting to a tertiary care hospital.
Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at the Department of Psychiatry, Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), Islamabad, from July 5, 2024, to January 4, 2025. A total of 142 patients (68 males, 74 females), aged 18–60 years and diagnosed with schizophrenia per DSM-5 criteria, were enrolled through non-probability consecutive sampling. Patients with substance abuse, intellectual disability, or neurological disorders were excluded. Suicidal ideation was assessed using the Beck Scale for Suicidal Ideation, with a score of ≥7 taken as the cutoff. Demographic and clinical data were analyzed using SPSS version 26, with significance set at p<0.05.
Results: The mean age of participants was 38.00 ± 10.63 years, with 64.8% under 40 years of age. Females constituted 52.1% of the sample. A BMI above 25.0 kg/m² was observed in 44.4% of cases. Suicidal ideation was present in 33 patients (23.2%). Significant associations were found between suicidal ideation and BMI (p = 0.032) as well as profession (p = 0.001), while other variables showed no statistically significant correlation.
Conclusion: A substantial proportion of patients with schizophrenia reported suicidal ideation, particularly among those with higher BMI and salaried occupations. These findings highlight the need for targeted screening and intervention strategies to mitigate suicide risk in this vulnerable population.
References
Grigoriou M, Upthegrove R. Blunted affect and suicide in schizophrenia: A systematic review. Psychiatry Res. 2020;293:113355.
Ricci V, Cristofori E, Passarello E, Paggi A, Cavallo A, Ceci F, et al. CANNABIS USE AND SUICIDE IN NON-AFFECTIVE PSYCHOSIS: A MINI-REVIEW OF RECENT LITERATURE. Psychiatr Danub. 2023;35(3):307-19.
Palma-Álvarez RF, Daigre C, Ros-Cucurull E, Perea-Ortueta M, Ortega-Hernández G, Ríos-Landeo A, et al. Clinical features and factors related to lifetime suicidal ideation and suicide attempts in patients who have had substance-induced psychosis across their lifetime. Psychiatry Res. 2023;323:115147.
Bigdeli TB, Barr PB, Rajeevan N, Graham DP, Li Y, Meyers JL, et al. Correlates of suicidal behaviors and genetic risk among United States veterans with schizophrenia or bipolar I disorder. Mol Psychiatry. 2024;29(8):2399-407.
Bani-Fatemi A, Raymond R, Adanty C, Dai N, Gerretsen P, Graff A, et al. Global DNA methylation in suicidal ideation and suicide attempt in schizophrenia. Psychiatr Genet. 2021;31(2):65-71.
Haining K, Karagiorgou O, Gajwani R, Gross J, Gumley AI, Lawrie SM, et al. Prevalence and predictors of suicidality and non-suicidal self-harm among individuals at clinical high-risk for psychosis: Results from a community-recruited sample. Early Interv Psychiatry. 2021;15(5):1256-65.
Fu Z, Zhang X, Xiao J. Prevalence and risk factors of suicide attempts among Chinese elderly patients over 50 years with schizophrenia. Suicide Life Threat Behav. 2024;54(3):460-7.
Ang SH, Venkateswaran S, Goda MB, Naidu KNC, Kundadak GK, Subramaniam M. Prevalence of suicidal behaviour in adolescents and youth at ultra-high risk for psychosis: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Eur Psychiatry. 2025;68(1):e56.
Carruthers SP, Lee SJ, Sankaranarayanan A, Sumner PJ, Toh WL, Tan EJ, et al. Psychosis and Hopelessness Mediate the Relationship Between Reduced Sleep and Suicidal Ideation in Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders. Arch Suicide Res. 2022;26(4):1862-79.
Adjorlolo S, Mensah G, Badzi CD. Psychosis risk among pregnant women in Ghana. PLoS One. 2022;17(2):e0263011.
Steenkamp LR, de Neve-Enthoven NGM, João AM, Bouter DC, Hillegers MHJ, Hoogendijk WJG, et al. Psychotic experiences, suicidality and non-suicidal self-injury in adolescents: Independent findings from two cohorts. Schizophr Res. 2023;257:50-7.
Kuperberg M, Katz D, Greenebaum SLA, George N, Sylvia LG, Kinrys G, et al. Psychotic symptoms during bipolar depressive episodes and suicidal ideation. J Affect Disord. 2021;282:1241-6.
Rogers E, Gresswell M, Durrant S. The relationship between sleep and suicidality in schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders: A systematic review. Schizophr Res. 2023;261:291-303.
Furnes D, Gjestad R, Rypdal K, Mehlum L, Hart S, Oedegaard KJ, et al. Suicidal and violent ideation in acute psychiatric inpatients: prevalence, co-occurrence, and associated characteristics. Suicide Life Threat Behav. 2021;51(3):528-39.
Liu J, Zhao K, Zhou S, Hong L, Xu Y, Sun S, et al. Suicidal ideation in Chinese adults with schizophrenia: associations with neurocognitive function and empathy. BMC Psychiatry. 2023;23(1):311.
Nisbet J, Jamshidi L, Maguire KQ, Afifi TO, Brunet A, Fletcher AJ, et al. Suicidal Ideation, Planning, and Attempts Among new Royal Canadian Mounted Police Cadets. Can J Psychiatry. 2023;68(9):691-8.
Yin Y, Tong J, Huang J, Tian B, Chen S, Cui Y, et al. Suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, and neurocognitive dysfunctions among patients with first-episode schizophrenia. Suicide Life Threat Behav. 2020;50(6):1181-8.
Nath S, Kalita KN, Baruah A, Saraf AS, Mukherjee D, Singh PK. Suicidal ideation in schizophrenia: A cross-sectional study in a tertiary mental hospital in North-East India. Indian J Psychiatry. 2021;63(2):179-83.
Bai W, Liu ZH, Jiang YY, Zhang QE, Rao WW, Cheung T, et al. Worldwide prevalence of suicidal ideation and suicide plan among people with schizophrenia: a meta-analysis and systematic review of epidemiological surveys. Transl Psychiatry. 2021;11(1):552.
Chong BTW, Wahab S, Muthukrishnan A, Tan KL, Ch’ng ML, Yoong MT. Prevalence and Factors Associated with Suicidal Ideation in Institutionalized Patients with Schizophrenia. Psychol Res Behav Manag. 2020; 13:949-962
Nordentoft M, Laursen TM, Agerbo E, Qin P, Høyer EH, Mortensen PB. Change in suicide rates for patients with schizophrenia in Denmark, 1981–97: Nested case-control study. Br Med J 2024; 329:261.
Addington DD, Azorin JM, Falloon IR, Gerlach J, Hirsch SR, Siris SG. Clinical issues related to depression in schizophrenia: an international survey of psychiatrists. Acta Psychiatr Scand 2022; 105:189-95.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Bushra Javed, Rizwan Taj, Aamina Danial (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
