Petter Olsson1, Stefan Wiktorsson2, Simona Sacuiu1, Thomas Marlow1, Svante Östling1, Madeleine Mellqvist Fässberg1, Ingmar Skoog1, Margda Waern1. 1. Neuropsychiatric Epidemiology Unit, Section of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Institution of Neuroscience and Physiology, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden. 2. Neuropsychiatric Epidemiology Unit, Section of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Institution of Neuroscience and Physiology, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden stefan.wiktorsson@neuro.gu.se.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: The aim was to compare cognitive function in older suicide attempters with a population-based comparison group. METHODS: Hospitalized suicide attempters aged 70 years and older were assessed cognitively at baseline (n = 99) and 1-year follow-up (n = 59). Depression symptoms were rated with the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS). Results of cognitive assessments in attempters were compared with results in nonattempter comparison subjects (n = 115) selected among participants in our population-based health studies to yield a similar distribution of MADRS scores. RESULTS: Suicide attempters scored lower on Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) than comparison persons. Among attempters, the mean MMSE score was lower in those with medically serious attempts. Attempters displayed poorer performance on tests of pentagon drawing and abstract thinking compared to comparison persons, and the results remained also after exclusion of those with medically serious attempts. At 1-year follow-up, significant improvement in MADRS scores was observed in the attempters. No evidence of improvement could be shown regarding cognitive deficits. CONCLUSION: Older suicide attempters may have cognitive deficits, which may in part be related to the attempt itself. This needs to be taken into account when designing intervention strategies.
OBJECTIVE: The aim was to compare cognitive function in older suicide attempters with a population-based comparison group. METHODS: Hospitalized suicide attempters aged 70 years and older were assessed cognitively at baseline (n = 99) and 1-year follow-up (n = 59). Depression symptoms were rated with the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS). Results of cognitive assessments in attempters were compared with results in nonattempter comparison subjects (n = 115) selected among participants in our population-based health studies to yield a similar distribution of MADRS scores. RESULTS: Suicide attempters scored lower on Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) than comparison persons. Among attempters, the mean MMSE score was lower in those with medically serious attempts. Attempters displayed poorer performance on tests of pentagon drawing and abstract thinking compared to comparison persons, and the results remained also after exclusion of those with medically serious attempts. At 1-year follow-up, significant improvement in MADRS scores was observed in the attempters. No evidence of improvement could be shown regarding cognitive deficits. CONCLUSION: Older suicide attempters may have cognitive deficits, which may in part be related to the attempt itself. This needs to be taken into account when designing intervention strategies.
Authors: Meiqian Gong; Sheng Zhang; Wenyan Li; Wanxin Wang; Ruipeng Wu; Lan Guo; Ciyong Lu Journal: Int J Environ Res Public Health Date: 2020-08-19 Impact factor: 3.390
Authors: M M Fässberg; B Vanaelst; M Jonson; T R Sterner; F Ahlner; H Wetterberg; L Rydén; S Kern; R Sigström; A Zettergren; I Skoog; M Waern Journal: Epidemiol Psychiatr Sci Date: 2019-04-01 Impact factor: 6.892
Authors: S B Rutter; N Cipriani; E C Smith; E Ramjas; D H Vaccaro; M Martin Lopez; W R Calabrese; D Torres; P Campos-Abraham; M Llaguno; E Soto; M Ghavami; M M Perez-Rodriguez Journal: Curr Top Behav Neurosci Date: 2020