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Most elderly
people who commit suicide suffer from depression and researchers
have now found that serious physical illness is often an underlying
cause, according to a study in the British Medical Journal.
Researchers
at Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Gothenburg, Sweden looked
at the records of 46 men and 39 women, ages 65 and older,
who had committed suicide. They compared their findings with
a control group of 84 men and 69 women of the same age, living
in the same area. Relatives of both groups were interviewed.
Impaired
vision, neurological disorders, and malignant disease were
all independently linked with suicide. When each gender was
studied separately, serious physical illness appeared to be
a stronger predictor of suicide in men than women.
Many elderly
people who commit suicide consult their physician shortly
before their death, but many fail to communicate their despair,
report the researchers. Further research should focus on the
detection and treatment of depression and suicide as it relates
to physical illness, they concluded.
Source:
Depression Week
of June 16, 2002
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