Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms and suicide ideation and attempts: Findings from the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2007

Andrew Stickley; Ai Koyanagi; Vladislav Ruchkin; Yoko Kamio

doi:10.1016/j.jad.2015.09.061

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms and suicide ideation and attempts: Findings from the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2007

J Affect Disord. 2016 Jan 1:189:321-8. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2015.09.061. Epub 2015 Oct 22.

Authors

Andrew Stickley¹, Ai Koyanagi², Vladislav Ruchkin³, Yoko Kamio⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Child and Adolescent Mental Health, National Institute of Mental Health, National Center for Neurology and Psychiatry (NCNP), 4-1-1 Ogawahigashi, Kodaira, Tokyo 187-8553, Japan; The Stockholm Center for Health and Social Change (SCOHOST), Södertörn University, Huddinge 141 89, Sweden; Department of Human Ecology, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan. Electronic address: andrew.stickley@sh.se.
² Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, Universitat de Barcelona, Fundació Sant Joan de Déu, Dr Antoni Pujades, 42, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Barcelona 08830, Spain; Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental, CIBERSAM, Monforte de Lemos 3-5 Pabellón 11, 28029 Madrid, Spain.
³ Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Unit, Department of Neuroscience, Uppsala University, Uppsala S-751 85, Sweden; Child Study Center, Yale University Medical School, New Haven, CT 06520, USA; Säter Forensic Psychiatric Clinic, Säter S-783 27, Sweden.
⁴ Department of Child and Adolescent Mental Health, National Institute of Mental Health, National Center for Neurology and Psychiatry (NCNP), 4-1-1 Ogawahigashi, Kodaira, Tokyo 187-8553, Japan.

PMID: 26469299
DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2015.09.061

Abstract

Background: Adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may have an increased risk of engaging in suicidal behavior. This study examined this association in the general adult population where there has been little research.

Methods: Data came from the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2007. This was a representative sample of the English adult household population aged ≥16 years (N=7403). The Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS) was used to obtain information on ADHD symptoms. The Clinical Interview Schedule Revised (CIS-R) was used to assess six forms of common mental disorder (CMD). Information was also obtained on the lifetime and past 12-month occurrence of suicide ideation and attempts. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine these associations.

Results: After adjusting for comorbid disorders, adults with more ADHD symptoms had significantly higher odds for suicidal behavior. When a single cut-off point was used to classify ADHD (ASRS score ≥14), odds ratios ranged from 1.62 (lifetime suicide attempt) to 2.43 (past 12-month suicide ideation). When ADHD symptoms were categorized by strata (I: a score of 0-9; II: 10-13; III: 14-17; IV: 18-24), compared to adults in stratum I, those in stratum IV had odds ratios ranging from 2.16 (lifetime suicide ideation) to 3.68 (past 12-month suicide attempt).

Limitations: ADHD and suicide data came from self-reports which may have been affected by socially desirable responding.

Conclusions: ADHD symptoms were linked to suicidal behavior after controlling for comorbid conditions. Health care professionals should be alerted to the increased suicide risk among adults with ADHD symptoms.

Keywords: ADHD; APMS 2007; Common mental disorders; Suicidal ideation; Suicide attempt.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Adult
Aged
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / diagnosis*
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / psychology
Female
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Self-Injurious Behavior / psychology*
Suicidal Ideation*
Suicide, Attempted / psychology*
Symptom Assessment
Young Adult