Depression should be managed like a chronic disease: Myth of 15% suicide rate was promulgated again

doi:10.1136/bmj.332.7550.1154

BMJ 2006;332:1154 (13 May), doi:10.1136/bmj.332.7550.1154

Letter

Depression should be managed like a chronic disease

Myth of 15% suicide rate was promulgated again

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

EDITOR—Scott's editorial arguing that depression shouldbe managed as a chronic disease perpetuates the myth that 15%of people with depression will eventually commit suicide.¹

A much cited meta-analysis in 1970 found that 15% of peoplewith depression committed suicide.² It focused primarily onpeople admitted with severe depression, so it should never havebeen generalised to the broader population of people with depression.

Several rigorous studies have subsequently been published refutingthe 15% claim. A meta-analysis by Bostwick and Pankratz founda hierarchy of lifetime suicide prevalences: 8.6% in peopleever admitted for suicidality, 4% in patients admitted withaffective disorder but not specifically for suicidality, and2.2% in mixed inpatient and outpatient populations.³

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Credit: PHOTOS.COM

Boardman and Healy analysed data from a database of suicidecases in North Staffordshire, and used psychiatric prevalencesfrom the US national comorbidity survey to calculate lifetimesuicide risk in people . . . [Full text of this article]

Melissa K Raven, lecturer

Department of Public Health, Flinders University, Box 2100, Adelaide, SA 5001, Australia melissa.raven@flinders.edu.au