Suicide Attempts by Self-Poisoning Among the Elderly in Noor Hospital, Isfahan, Iran

• Published in: Clinical toxicology (Philadelphia, Pa.) Vol. 46; no. 5; p. 389
• Main Authors: Gheshlaghi, F, Izadi, M N, Montazeri, G, Jafar, S M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 01.06.2008
• ISSN: 1556-3650

Objective: The investigation assessed patients treated for self-intoxication in the Department of Clinical Toxicology of Noor Hospital, Isfahan, Iran. The aim of this study was to present suicidological problems in the elderly. Methods: Medical documentation of the entire population of subjects aged over 65 and hospitalized in the years 2006-2007 was examined from the point of view of demographic and clinical factors. Results: The examined population consisted of 43 subjects including 30 males and 13 females ranging in age from 65 to 83 years (mean age=72.5 in male and 73.5 in female). The majority of subjects were retired (35, 81.4%) and, in many cases, lived with her or his family (39, 90.6%). A significant number of subjects had been undergoing psychiatric treatment (12, 27.9%). depressive disorders (reactive) and endogenic depression (affective) were recognized in 30 subjects (69.7%). A significant percentage (22, 51%) had suffered from chronic diseases; the most frequently determined somatic diseases were hypertension (33.3%) and coronary artery decease (30.4%), COPD (15.9%) and diabetes (10.1%). For 41 of the subjects (95.3%), it was the first suicide attempt and in 2 cases there was a history of previous suicidal attempt. The substances most frequently used in the attempts were drugs (25, 58%) including (psychotropic, antidepressant, cardiological and mixed-type drugs), opioids (10, 23.2%), pesticide (5, 11.6%) methanol (2, 4.6 %), hair remover (1, 2.3%). The mean duration of hospitalization was 1.3 days. Conclusion: The description of the data indicates that there is a close relation between depression and chronic diseases and suicidal attempts in the case of the elderly. Therefore, an adequate treatment of depression and chronic diseases should be give priority in programs for preventing suicide among the elderly (1,2,3,4).