• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.187-194
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• 2015

Objectives To examine direct causes of attempted suicides, methods adopted to commit suicide, and psychiatric diagnoses among suicide attempters in South Korea. Methods A total of 1359 suicide attempters who had visited emergency department of 17 medical centers due to suicide attempt from May 2013 to Nov 2013 were interviewed using semi-structured questionnaires. Results Psychiatric symptoms were the most common cause of suicide attempts (62.2%), followed by interpersonal relationships (24.4%). Women attempted suicide more often for interpersonal reasons, whereas men were more likely to do so for financial and job-related reasons. Half of participants (55.8%) attempted suicide by drug intoxication, which was more prevalent among females and those who had previous history of psychiatric disease or previous suicide attempt. Men were more likely to use more lethal methods such as pesticide poisoning and gas inhalation than women. Pesticide poisoning was also prevalent among the elderly group and the rural population. Near ninety-five percent (94.5%) of participants received a psychiatric diagnosis : the most frequent diagnosis was depressive disorder. Conclusions This is the first nationwide study of cases of attempted suicide. When stratified by age groups, gender, urbanicity, living alone or not, presence of physical illness, previous psychiatric history, and previous suicide attempt, there were significant differences with respect to causes, methods of attempted suicides and psychiatric diagnoses of suicide attempters.

• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.46-55
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• 1984

The socio-psychiatric study and personality analysis by Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory on attempted suicides with drug intoxication in Seonsan-Gun and Cheongdo-Gun of Kyoungsang buk-Do was attempted to identify overall picture of attempted suicides and to detect some characteristics of personality. The total of 93 suicide attempted cases which were brought to the local clinics for the past 3 years from February, 1981 to February,1984 were sampled among them. The socio-psychiatric study and MMPI were performed with 45 attempters possible to be interviewed. The personalities of a group which answered "Still have the desire occasionally" or "Don't know about the present attitude toward suicide was compared with those of the other group who answered "Will not do it agagin". The results were as follows; 1) The sex ratio of the total attempters (93 cases) were 138.5. The highest rate by age group was found in the 3rd decade to be 27 cases. On the other hand, the sex ratio of interviewed cases were 136.8 and the highest rate was found in the age group of 50-59. 2) For the common characteristics of majority other than sex, 55.7% of cases were graduated primary school, and 62.2% were engaged in agriculture. 3) Except the fact that more of the attempted suicides happened during summer, there were no seasonal variation among other seasons. 4) The places selected for the attempted suicides were the houses in majority of cases (98%). Most of cases (53.3%) were found immediately after the attempt and 24.4% within one hour. For the poison taken, 86.7 took a sort of herbicides or insecticides, 55.6% were admitted to local clinics for only one day and 20% for two days. 5) The most common precipitating factors of the attempted suicides were family trouble and financial poverty. 6) The psychodynamic motives of the attempters were impulsive hostility(35.6%), abandonment(33.3%), guilt feeling (11.1%), manipulation and attention seeking (8.9%) and others. 7) In regard to their present attitude toward suicide, 29 cases (64.4%) expressed that they would never do such an act again, 37.8% of cases expressed that they really wanted to die at the time when they attempted. 8) The Psychopathic deviate, Paranoia, Depression, Schizophrenia scores were significantly higher in the attempters group who answered "Don't know" or "Possibly" for the question of "Will you attempt suicide again?" Than the group who answered" will not do it again".

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.81-88
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• 1999

Objectives : Significant progress has been made in understanding psychosocial, psychological, and environmental factors associated with suicide. However it is only recently that attention has been paid to the understanding of the neurobiology of suicide. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between platelet serotonin level and suicidal behavior and psychological features of the suicidal attempters. Methods : After a suicidal attempt platelet serotonin level was measured from 21 patients and compared it with those from depression patients and normal controls. Also MMPI, HAM-D, Barratt impulsiveness scale(BIS) were done to evaluate their psychological features. Results : 1) There was no significant difference in sex ratio of the suicidal attempters. 2) There was no significant difference in platelet serotonin levels among three groups. 3) The analysis of MMPI revealed that the scores of D, Hs, Pt in clinical scales were significantly higher in suicide patients and scores of D, Pa, Si were in depression patients. 4) The HAM-D score was significantly higher in depression and suicide patients, especially in depression patients. 5) The analysis of Barratt impulsiveness scale revealed that the scores of nonplanning, motor and cognitive impulsiveness scale were significantly higher in suicide patients. Conclusions : There was no significant difference in platelet serotonin levels among three groups. However the analysis of psychological features revealed significant differences. Therefore we concluded that psychological examinations are benefit to evaluate the suicidal tendency.

• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.5-9
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• 2013

One of hypothesis is that sleep loss related to a decrease in serotonergic activity plays a significant role in attempted suicide. A growing evidence suggests that central serotonergic activity plays a key role in the etiology of suicide. It has been reported that the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) levels of 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA), the main metabolite of serotonin, were reduced in suicide attempters. In addition, there is evidence that tryptophan hydroxylase is associated with suicide. The association between sleep and suicide was also suggested by some researchers. Several recent studies have showed the association between sleep disturbance and suicide rates in patients with mental disorders and in a general population. In addition, it has been suggested that serotonin plays a role in maintaining arousal and regulating muscle tone and in regulating some of the phasic events of REM sleep. Especially, it is well-known that 5-HT2 receptors are related to slow wave sleep. In conclusion, it is clear that sleep, serotonin activity, and suicide are linked, although the direction of causation needs clarification. In future, large population-based cohort studies are needed to demonstrate the direction of causation in the relationships between sleep, serotonin activity, and suicide.

• Korean Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.74-82
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• 2016

Objectives : Suicide attempters have impaired decision making and are at high risk of reattempt. Therefore it is important to refer them to psychiatric treatment. Especially, People with medical comorbidity are at higher risk of suicidal attempt and mortality. The aim of this study was to investigate the characteristics of suicidal attempters and to analyze the influence of the medical comorbidity on decision to receive psychiatric treatment after visit to an emergency department. Methods : One hundred and thirty two patients, who visited the emergency room of a general hospital in Gyeonggi-do between January, 2012 and December, 2012 were enrolled as the subjects of this study. After reviewing each subject's medical records retrospectively, demographic and clinical factors were analyzed. Results : Regardless of the engagement type, either via admission or outpatient clinic, the determinant factors of psychiatric treatment engagement were psychiatric diagnosis, employment status, previous psychiatric treatment history, and previous attempt history. Comparison of severity of medical comorbidity(Charlson Comorbidity Index) showed that suicide attempters who received psychiatric treatment via admission or refused the treatment tended to have higher level of medical comorbidity than who received psychiatric treatment via outpatient department. Conclusions : Our findings showed that medical comorbidity of suicide attempters affected the decision to accept psychiatric treatment. All psychiatrists should evaluate the presence and the severity of medical comorbidity of the suicide attempters and consider implementing more intervention for the medically ill attempters who are willing to discharge against advice.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.110-116
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• 2004

Objectives:Recently, polymorphisms of several serotonin genes have been suggested to be associated with suicide, but the results are still unclear. We examined whether the T102C polymorphisms of the serotonin 2A receptor gene and the G861C polymorphisms of the serotonin 1B receptor gene were associated with suicidal behavior using drug intoxication. Methods:The subjects were 52 patients who visited emergency room with suicidal behaviors. Fifty controls were selected from healthy volunteers matched for sex and age to the suicide subjects. The polymorphisms were analyzed with TaqMan$^{(R)}$ assay using primers based on previous studies. Results:The T102C polymorphism of the serotonin 2A receptor gene showed no significant difference between the suicidal attempters and controls in both genotype and allele frequency analyses(p=0.179 and p=0.422, respectively). There was no statistically significant difference between the suicidal attempters and the controls in the G861C polymorphism of the serotonin 1B receptor gene and any significant effect of the genotype distributions or the allele frequencies was not observed(p=0.092 and p=0.987, respectively). Conclusion:These findings suggest that the T102C polymorphism in serotonin 2A receptor gene and the G861C polymorphism in serotonin 1B receptor gene are not related to the susceptibility to suicide attempts using drugs. To clarify the genetic influences of the serotonergic system on suicidal behavior, the polymorphisms of other candidate genes in the serotonergic system should be studied with larger numbers of subjects.

• Korean Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.107-113
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• 2015

Objectives : The aim of this study was to investigate the factors including possibility of bipolar disorder that are related to intensity of suicidal idea. Methods : The study subjects consisted of 50 patients who did suicidal attempt and treated at the Inje University Haeundae Paik Hospital Emergency Room. All participants underwent psychiatric interview and underwent Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale(C-SSRS), Beck Depression Inventory(BDI), Korean Version of Mood Disorder Questionnaire(MDQ) and Bipolar Spectrum Diagnostic Scale(BSDS) to evaluate patient's suicide attempt, severity of depression and possibility of bipolar disorder. Results : Compared to non-high risk group, suicide high risk group showed significantly higher BDI(p<0.001) and intensity of ideation(IOI) in C-SSRS(p<0.001). Also intensity of ideation(IOI) was correlated with Mood Disorder Questionnaire(MDQ) bipolarity positive(p=0.033). Conclusions : The present study indicated that possibility of bipolar disorder plays a significant role in suicide attempters. Assessment of suicide ideation severity and possibility of bipolar disorder should be considered when suicide attempters come to emergency room.

• The Journal of Korean Academic Society of Nursing Education
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.341-352
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• 2017

Purpose: To identify the types and characteristics of subjective structures among nursing students toward individuals who attempt suicide. Methods: A group of 32 third- and fourth-year nursing students with experience in clinical practice rated 35 Q-statements on a nine-point scale according to their opinion. Data analysis was conducted using the PC-Quanl program. Results: Subjectivity among nursing students toward individuals who attempt suicide was analyzed for three types. Type 1 (social responsibility emphasis) subjectivity recognizes the social responsibility for suicide attempts and emphasizes the importance of social support systems as a preventive effort. Type 2 (rational reprimand) subjectivity emphasizes the willpower and effort to overcome challenges in life, because happiness and unhappiness are dependent on one's thoughts and will. Type 3 (situation acceptance) subjectivity regards the suicide attempt as an optional means to avoid a deeply strenuous, painful, and difficult situation. Conclusion: This study investigated the subjectivity of nursing students toward individuals who attempt suicide and to provide a better understanding of them. In addition, the development of training programs that take advantage of the subjective characteristics of individuals based on subjectivity types demonstrated in this study is expected to provide nursing students with useful educational materials for their future careers as nurses.

• Anxiety and mood
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.79-85
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• 2012

Objective : The current study investigated the psychopathology characteristics of the suicide attempter visited in a university hospital for one year using the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) test commonly used in clinical medicine. Methods : 72 suicide attempter and 115 control group completed the Korean version of the MMPI. Results : The MMPI scores of the suicide attempters were significantly higher on the lie (L), infrequency (F), defensiveness (K), paranoia (Pa), psychasthenia (Pt), schizophrenia (Sc), hypomania (Ma) than the comparison group. Conclusion : We supposed that suicide attempter have more chance of being paranoid, psychasthenic, schizoid or hypomanic than the control group relatively. They seem to have psychotic psychopathology rather than neurotic psychopathology. These results suppoed that the psychopatholgy of suicide attempter may be different from the control group. However the final decision is indefinite, it needs more well designed systemic studies.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.52 no.1
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• pp.80-91
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• 2022

Purpose: This study aimed to identify relationships among knowledge and skills about suicide prevention, attitudes toward suicide, and burnout of suicide prevention work of nurses at mental health welfare centers. Methods: An explanatory sequential mixed-method research was conducted. For the quantitative study, the subjects (nurses) were 133 nurses executing suicide prevention work. The data were analyzed using the SPSS 25.0 program. For the qualitative research, 13 nurses with high burnout scores were interviewed. The data were analyzed using theme analysis method. Results: Quantitative results showed the average burnout of suicide prevention work was 54.62 ± 12.51. The burnout of suicide prevention work had significant correlations with attitudes toward suicide (r = .30, p < .001) and suicide prevention skills (r = - .18, p = .037). Qualitative results showed six themes related to burnout of suicide prevention work. They were 'feeling a lack of confidence in one's suicide counselling skills', 'feeling of the limits of one's ability to cope with a suicide crisis', 'feeling regret for not being able to help the clients', 'being over-empathetic to the clients', 'Not being able to understand the clients because the subjects (nurses) opposes committing suicide', and 'thinking that the suicidal thoughts of suicide attempters do not improve'. Conclusion: To reduce burnout of nurses' suicide prevention work at mental health welfare centers, there is a need to develop an educational program considering nurses' attitudes toward suicide and one to enhance their confidence in suicide prevention skills.