This Article  • References  • Full text PDF  • Reply to article  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citation map  • Citing articles on HighWire  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Similar articles in this journal  Social Bookmarking   What's this?

George E. Murphy, MD; Richard D. Wetzel, PhD

Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1990;47(4):383-392.

Abstract
• Current estimates of the lifetime risk of suicide in alcoholism (11% to 15%) are shown statistically to be untenable. Examination of the mortality from suicide in all published follow-up studies of alcoholics containing the requisite data permits calculation of a much smaller lifetime suicide risk: about 2% in untreated and 2.21% in outpatient-treated probands. Studies of alcoholics identified from hospital admissions yield a lifetime risk of about 3.4% for the United States, the United Kingdom, and other English-speaking countries. It is higher in the Scandinavian and European countries with high suicide rates, but not in those with low national suicide rates. The population at risk is shown to be about half of that commonly estimated, and consists of seriously affected alcoholics. While the annual incidence of suicide in the United States is about 1.3% currently, only that quarter of the population identifiably psychiatrically ill is at significant risk. Despite the seemingly miniscule lifetime risk of 2% to 3.4%, the likelihood of suicide in conservatively diagnosed alcoholism is between 60 and 120 times that of the non-psychiatrically ill. Such alcoholism contributes about 25% of the suicides.

Author Affiliations
From the Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Mo.

Footnotes
Accepted for publication April 11, 1989.

Reprint requests to Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, 4940 Audubon Ave, St Louis, MO 63110 (Dr Murphy).

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter     What's this?

THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

Predictive Modeling in Hostage and Barricade Incidents
Michaud et al.
Criminal Justice and Behavior 2008;35:1136-1155.
ABSTRACT  

Recognizing alcohol and drug abuse in patients with eating disorders
Conason et al.
QJM 2006;99:335-339.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Alcohol consumption and suicide
Sher
QJM 2006;99:57-61.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Mortality and Suicide Among Danish Women With Cosmetic Breast Implants
Jacobsen et al.
Arch Intern Med 2004;164:2450-2455.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Increased Risk of Suicide Among Patients With Breast Implants: Do the Epidemiologic Data Support Psychiatric Consultation?
McLaughlin et al.
Psychosomatics 2004;45:277-280.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Suicide Attempts Associated With Externalizing Psychopathology in an Epidemiological Sample
Verona et al.
Am. J. Psychiatry 2004;161:444-451.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Predictors and Correlates of Suicide Attempts Over 5 Years in 1,237 Alcohol-Dependent Men and Women
Preuss et al.
Am. J. Psychiatry 2003;160:56-63.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

A survey of opinions on the management of individuals who express suicidal ideation while intoxicated with alcohol
McCaffery et al.
Psychiatr. Bull. 2002;26:332-334.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

A Current Perspective of Suicide and Attempted Suicide
Mann
ANN INTERN MED 2002;136:302-311.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Violence, Alcohol, and Completed Suicide: A Case-Control Study
Conner et al.
Am. J. Psychiatry 2001;158:1701-1705.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Suicide: An Overview
Westefeld et al.
The Counseling Psychologist 2000;28:445-510.
ABSTRACT  

A Tryptophan Hydroxylase Gene Marker for Suicidality and Alcoholism
Nielsen et al.
Arch Gen Psychiatry 1998;55:593-602.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Multiple Risk Factors Predict Suicide in Alcoholism
Murphy et al.
Arch Gen Psychiatry 1992;49:459-463.
ABSTRACT  

Mental Disorders in Adolescent Suicide: DSM-III-R Axes I and II Diagnoses in Suicides Among 13- to 19-Year-Olds in Finland
Marttunen et al.
Arch Gen Psychiatry 1991;48:834-839.
ABSTRACT  

Excess Mortality Among 3302 Patients With 'Pure' Anxiety Neurosis
Allgulander and Lavori
Arch Gen Psychiatry 1991;48:599-602.
ABSTRACT