Clinical Review
Depression and Substance Abuse Intensify Suicide Risk
Researchers examined the unique and combined contributions of the polytrauma clinical triad in certain combinations among Operation Iraqi Freedom/...
Research has shown that mental health symptoms often link the stresses of deployment and suicidal ideation. But the role of family-related factors is “largely unexplored,” say researchers from Boston University Medical Center in Massachusetts who surveyed 978 Afghanistan and Iraq veterans. They found family support during deployment could help prevent suicide after deployment.
Related: Depression and Substance Abuse Intensify Suicide Risk
Both family stress and lack of family support during deployment were associated with suicidal ideation. The associations, however, “occur primarily through mental health symptomatology,” according to study investigator Dawne S. Vogt, PhD, associate professor of psychiatry at Boston University and epidemiologist in the VA’s Women’s Health Sciences Division, National Center for PTSD.
Related: Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention Act
The researchers say their study underscores the potential of treating mental health symptoms as a means of preventing suicidal thoughts among veterans.