It is unknown if antidepressant treatment is associated with either increased or decreased risk of suicide.
To estimate the risk of suicide, attempted suicide, and overall mortality during antidepressant treatments in a real-life setting with high statistical power.
A cohort study in which all subjects without psychosis, hospitalized because of a suicide attempt from January 1, 1997, to December 31, 2003, in Finland, were followed up through a nationwide computerized database.
A total of 15 390 patients with a mean follow-up of 3.4 years.
The propensity score-adjusted relative risks (RRs) during monotherapy with the most frequently used antidepressants compared with no antidepressant treatment.
In the entire cohort, fluoxetine use was associated with the lowest risk (RR, 0.52; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.30-0.93), and venlafaxine hydrochloride use with the highest risk (RR, 1.61; 95% CI, 1.01-2.57), of suicide. A substantially lower mortality was observed during selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor use (RR, 0.59; 95% CI, 0.49-0.71; P
Notes
Comment In: Evid Based Ment Health. 2007 Aug;10(3):9017652572