Self-harm behaviour, psychopathological distress and suicidal ideation in normal and deliberate self-harm outpatient's adults

Abstract

Objective: To identify the association among suicidal ideation, deliberate self-harm, and psychopathological distress in normal and deliberate self-harm adults.

Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted at the Department of Psychiatry, Military Hospital, Rawalpindi, Pakistan, from January to July 2017, and comprised deliberate self harm and normal adults aged 18-25 years. Psychiatric evaluation involved a semi-structured interview based on mental status examination. The self-harm tendency was assessed on the basis of self-harm inventory of the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Beck scale for suicide ideation and he depression anxiety and stress scale were also used for data collection. Data was analysed using SPSS 22.

Results: There were 200 subjects with a mean age of 20.89±9.06 years; 100(50%) each in deliberate self-harm and normal groups. Deliberate self-harm was significantly positively associated with suicidal ideation and mental health problems, including depression, anxiety and stress (p<0.05). Deliberate self-harm tendency was also positively associated with mental health problems in normal adults (p<0.05). Normal adults had higher level of mental health problems, such as depression and stress, compared to deliberate self harm adults (p<0.05). Adults having self-harm behaviour were more inclined to have suicidal ideation compared to normal adults behaviour (p<0.05).

Conclusions: Deliberate self-harm was found to be strongly related to suicidal behaviour and mental health issues in both normal and deliberate self-harm adults.

Keywords: Suicidal ideation, Deliberate self-harm, Anxiety, Depression, Stress..