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The
Psychopathology and the
Sociodemographic Determinants
of Attempted Suicide Patients
917-920
Correspondence
Pirdutt Bansal (MD. Psychiatry)
Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry
Adesh Institute of Medical sciences & Research, Bhatinda
Phone: +919876005247
E-mail: pdbansal71@rediffmail.com
Background: Suicide and suicidal behaviour are known since the birth of humanity. Unfortunately, it is not possible to predict suicidal behaviour with certainty. Suicide is common, but there scanty data on this topic from India.
Materials and Methods: A cross sectional study was performed for a period of 1 year in a medical college and research center in North India.
Results: A majority of the samples were males (61%), 70% were less than 30 years of age, 57% were married, 25% werehousewives and had high school education. The most common method of suicide was self poisoning (69%), followed by burning, hanging, getting electrocuted and getting run over by trains. The most common psychiatric illness which was found was affective disorder (57%). Depressive disorder (46%) constituted a major category of the affective disorders.
Conclusion: Awareness programmes and preventive measures should be undertaken and a proper psychiatric referral system should be built up to reduce the incidence of suicides.