A prospective 5-year follow-up study of self-poisoned patients.

A 5-year follow-up study of 253 patients discharged after self-poisoning is presented. Repeated acts of self-poisoning occurred mainly in the first year after discharge; 20% and 22% of female and male patients, respectively. This number is a minimum, the migration frequency being high. Very few patients responded to a letter asking them for a follow-up interview, only 56% and 42% of female and male patients, respectively. Five years after discharge 18% of male patients and 11% of female patients had died. The 5-year mortality rate was 73 times the expected value for male patients and 109 times the expected value for female patients.