Differing correlates for suicide attempts among patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder in India and USA.

BACKGROUND: Suicide is one of the most common causes of death among persons with schizophrenia. Differing risk factors have been identified in published studies. The differences may have arisen because a uniform set of variables was not analyzed. Alternatively, the nature and effect of risk factors may vary in different settings. To test these possibilities, we investigated the same set of variables in two independent cross-national samples ascertained using identical protocols.

METHODS: Patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder (DSM IV criteria) were recruited in India (n=460) and the USA (n=424).

RESULTS: Consistent with earlier publications, a diagnosis of schizoaffective disorder, history of depression, pattern of symptoms and educational status were significantly associated with suicide attempts in the US sample. None of these variables were significantly associated in the Indian sample.

CONCLUSIONS: The impact of known risk factors for suicide attempts among patients with schizophrenia differs across ethnic groups.