Suicide attempt and suicidal ideation and their associations with demographic and clinical correlates and quality of life in Chinese schizophrenia patients

Objectives This study aimed to examine the prevalence and correlates of lifetime suicide attempts and current suicidal ideation in community-dwelling schizophrenia patients in China. Method A sample of 540 schizophrenia patients was randomly selected in Beijing, China. All subjects were interviewed using standardized assessment instruments and their basic socio-demographic and clinical data including history of suicide attempts were collected. Results The prevalence of lifetime suicide attempts and the point prevalence of suicidal ideation were 12.0 %, and 21.1 %, respectively. In multiple logistic regression analyses, the presence of lifetime suicide attempt was independently associated with rural residence, having major medical conditions and better social functioning, while higher likelihood of current suicidal ideation was associated with past suicide attempt, the severity of overall psychopathology and depressive symptoms and lower psychological quality of life (QOL). Conclusion Among Chinese outpatients with schizophrenia, increased current symptoms and poorer QOL were correlated with current suicidal ideation, while demographic factors and indicators of greater social support were mostly correlated with lifetime suicide attempts. This study may help to identify important subgroups of patients with schizophrenia at particularly high risk of suicidal behavior.