Suicidal ideation in patients admitted to general medical wards: Prevalence and associated depressive symptoms

Abstract

objective: To assess the prevalence of suicidal ideation and the depressive symptoms associated to it in medical inpatients. Methods: All adults consecutively admitted to the medical wards of a University Hospital had their names recorded, were randomized and evaluated during the first week of admission. Socio-demographic data were collected and the Patient Health Questionnaire (question 9, assessing suicidal ideation), the Beck Depression Inventory and the Charlson comorbidity index were applied. The Student t test, chi-square test and logistic regression analysis were used. results: Of the 1,092 patients who composed the sample, 79 (7.2%) reported having suicidal ideation. In the multivariate analysis, after adjusting for gender, age, physical comorbidity and the presence of a depressive syndrome, the following symptoms when in moderate to severe degree discriminated patients who had suicidal ideation: sadness [RR: 3.18; CI 95% = 1.78-5.65; p < 0.001], feeling like a failure [RR: 2.01; CI 95% = 1.09-3.72; p = 0.03], loss of interest in people [RR: 2.69; CI 95% = 1.47-4.94; p = 0.001] and insomnia [RR: 1.74; CI 95% = 1.05-2.89; p = 0.03]. Conclusion: The prevalence of suicidal ideation in medical inpatients was 7.2%. When present in a moderate to severe degree, symptoms like sadness, feeling like a failure, loss of interest in people and insomnia should alert the medical team to assess suicidal ideation.