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Parental history of suicide attempt increased risk among adolescents

Parental history of a suicide attempt has been associated with a nearly fivefold increased risk for suicide attempts among children at risk for mood disorders, research suggests.

In the prospective study, the researchers examined 701 offspring, aged 10 to 50 years (mean age, 17.7 years), from 334 clinically referred probands with mood disorders. Of those, 191 (57.2%) had made a suicide attempt. The patients were followed for up to a mean of 5.6 years, according to data.

David A. Brent, MD, of the Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, and colleagues found that 44 (6.3%) of 701 offspring had made a suicide attempt before the study, and 29 (4.1%) made an attempt during study follow-up.

They also found that proband suicide attempts predicted suicide attempts made by offspring (OR=4.79; 95% CI, 1.75-13.07).

This finding was consistent when researchers considered baseline history of mood disorder (OR=4.2; 95% CI, 1.37-12.86), baseline history of suicide attempt (OR=5.69; 95% CI, 1.94-16.74), and mood disorder at the time point before the suicide attempt (OR=11.32; 95% CI, 2.29-56), according to data.

“In this high-risk longitudinal study, we found that parental suicide attempt conveyed a nearly fivefold increased risk of offspring attempt, even controlling for the familial transmission of mood disorder,” the researchers wrote.

Disclosure: See the study for a full list of relevant financial disclosures.