AUTHOR=Harnod Dorji , Lin Cheng-Li , Harnod Tomor , Kao Chia-Hung 

TITLE=Increasing Risks of Suicide Attempt and Suicidal Drug Overdose After Head Trauma in Patients With Sleep-Disordered Breathing: A Population-Based Study

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychiatry

VOLUME=11

YEAR=2020

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2020.533784

DOI=10.3389/fpsyt.2020.533784

ISSN=1664-0640

ABSTRACT=<p><bold>Objective:</bold> To determine the risks of suicide attempt (SA) and suicidal drug overdose (SDO) after head trauma in patients with sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) by using the National Health Insurance Research Database of Taiwan.</p><p><bold>Methods:</bold> We analyzed the data of patients aged ≥20 years who were diagnosed with SDB between 2000 and 2012. We further divided them into two cohorts [with admission for head injury (SBI) and without (SBN)], and we compared them against sex-, age-, comorbidity-, and index-date-matched healthy individuals. The adjusted hazard ratios (aHRs) and 95% confidence intervals of SA and SDO were calculated with adjustment of age, sex, and comorbidities.</p><p><bold>Results:</bold> Approximately 0.61% of patients among the overall 142,063 patients with SDB had SA, with 535 and 335 patients included in the SBN and SBI cohorts, respectively. Compared with patients with SBN, a significantly higher risk of SA was observed in patients with SBI (aHR = 2.22), especially in those aged under 50 years (aHR = 2.48). Notably, a SDO incidence of 1.20% was noted in patients with SDB, and the SBI cohort had a 1.81-fold higher risk for SDO when compared with the SBN cohort.</p><p><bold>Conclusion:</bold> The risks of subsequent SA and SDO are proportionally increased by the effects of head trauma with a moderating role of SDB, especially in those aged &lt;50 years. SDB and head trauma can increase suicide behaviors individually and synergistically.</p>