Please read Dr. Nowels’ article in General Hospital Psychiatry titled, “Suicide within 1 year of non-fatal overdose: Risk factors and risk reduction with medications for opioid use disorder.“
Suicide is a leading cause of death in the United States, with suicide rates increasing approximately 37% between 2000 and 2021. Alongside the increase in suicide deaths, provisional data from 2022 show a total drug overdose death increase of 6.6-fold since 1999. People with opioid use disorder (OUD) and those experiencing overdoses have increased likelihood of suicidal behaviors and suicide mortality.
Examining risk of suicide mortality following a non-fatal overdose has important implications for suicide risk screening and the development of clinical interventions, particularly in the context of treatment and services received during and after a non-fatal overdose. Admission to an intensive care unit (ICU) and receipt of mechanical ventilation are both associated with new mental health diagnoses after discharge. Mechanical ventilation has been associated with increased risk of suicidal behavior in medically ill patients, but it is unknown whether this association extends to patients following a non-fatal opioid overdose. To read the full article.
Suicide within 1 year of non-fatal overdose: Risk factors and risk reduction with medications for opioid use disorder. Nowels MA, Duberstein PR, Crystal S, Treitler P, Miles J, Olfson M, Samples H. Gen Hosp Psychiatry. 2023 Nov 4;86:24-32. PMID: 38061284 DOI: 1016/j.genhosppsych.2023.11.003