Childhood abuse raises drug users’ suicide risk

http://news.brown.edu/pressreleases/2013/07/suicide

July 18, 2013 | Media Contact: David Orenstein

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — For health professionals, the message from a new study in the American Journal of Public Health is clear: Asking patients about a history of childhood abuse can directly help assess their risk of attempting suicide. The evidence, authors say, shows that childhood abuse can have life-and-death consequences for the rest of a person’s life.

The longitudinal study of more than 1,600 drug users in Vancouver, Canada, found that “severe-to-extreme” abuse – particularly emotional or sexual – contributed significantly to the risk of future suicide attempts, even after accounting for a wide variety of other suicide-related factors. Less severe abuse, and physical or emotional neglect no matter the degree, did not contribute significantly to suicide risk.

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