Suicide Attempts Correlate with Delusional Content in Major Depression

A retrospective analysis of all medically serious suicide attempts made by 45 patients hospitalized consecutively at the Payne Whitney Clinic with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual III discharge diagnosis of unipolar major depression recurrent with psychotic features was undertaken. Patients with delusions of persecution in combination with delusions of guilt were significantly more likely to make medically serious suicide attempts than patients with single categories of delusions or combinations other than guilt and persecution.