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Suicide mortality among male veterans discharged from Veterans Health Administration acute psychiatric units from 2005 to 2010

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to calculate suicide rates and identify correlates of risk in the year following discharge from acute Veterans Health Administration psychiatric inpatient units among male veterans discharged from 2005 to 2010 (fiscal years).

Methods

Suicide rates and standardized mortality ratios were calculated. Descriptive analyses were used to describe suicides and non-suicides and provide base rates for interpretation, and unadjusted and adjusted proportional hazard models were used to identify correlates of suicide.

Results

From 2005 to 2010, 929 male veterans died by suicide in the year after discharge and the suicide rate was 297/100,000 person-years (py). The suicide rate significantly increased from 234/100,000 py (95% CI = 193–282) in 2005 to 340/100,000 py (95% CI = 292–393) in 2008, after which it plateaued. Living in a rural setting, HR (95% CI) = 1.20 (1.05, 1.36), and being diagnosed with a mood disorder such as major depression, HR (95% CI) = 1.60 (1.36, 1.87), or other anxiety disorder, HR (95% CI) = 1.52 (1.24, 1.87), were associated with increased risk for suicide.

Conclusions

Among male veterans, the suicide rate in the year after discharge from acute psychiatric hospitalization increased from 2005 to 2008, after which it plateaued. Prevention efforts should target psychiatrically hospitalized veterans who live in rural settings and/or are diagnosed with mood or other anxiety disorders.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Veteran Affairs Medical Center, VISN 2 Center of Excellence for Suicide Prevention, Canandaigua, 400 Fort Hill Avenue, Canandaigua, NY, 14424, USA

    Peter C. Britton, Cathleen Kane, Brady Stephens & Wilfred R. Pigeon

  2. Department of Psychiatry, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Rochester, NY, USA

    Peter C. Britton & Wilfred R. Pigeon

  3. Department of Veteran Affairs Medical Center, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    Kipling M. Bohnert & Mark A. Ilgen

  4. Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    Kipling M. Bohnert & Mark A. Ilgen

Authors
  1. Peter C. Britton
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  2. Kipling M. Bohnert
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  3. Mark A. Ilgen
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  4. Cathleen Kane
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  5. Brady Stephens
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  6. Wilfred R. Pigeon
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Peter C. Britton.

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Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no competing interest.

Funding

This study was funded by the Department of Veterans Affairs, VISN 2 Center of Excellence (CoE) for Suicide Prevention, and Career Development Awards from the Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Research Development, Clinical Science Research and Development (CSR&D, IK2CX000641), and Health Services Research and Development (HSR&D, CDA 11–245).

Role of the sponsors

Study funders had no role in the design, analysis, interpretation, or publication of this study.

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Britton, P.C., Bohnert, K.M., Ilgen, M.A. et al. Suicide mortality among male veterans discharged from Veterans Health Administration acute psychiatric units from 2005 to 2010. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 52, 1081–1087 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-017-1377-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-017-1377-x

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