A new study has found that stroke survivors may be more likely to attempt or die by suicide than those who have not had a stroke. The findings of the research will be presented at the International Stroke Conference of the American Stroke Association 2021. The inaugural meeting will be held March 17-19, 2021. This study will be published simultaneously in the journal c Stroke .
Depression rates among stroke survivors range from 28 percent to 35 percent, and stroke is considered an independent risk factor for depression. Because post-stroke depression has been linked to increased suicidal ideation, researchers sought to measure and understand the risk of suicide after a stroke. “Recognizing that stroke may increase the risk from suicidal thoughts or attempted suicide will help people who have had a stroke, their families, and health care professionals identify and hope for those risks,” said an author the Manav V Vyas study, MBBS, MSc, clinical associate in neurology at the University of Toronto in Canada.
Vyas said, “It is important that we look into this issue as nearly 15 million people worldwide have a stroke each year, and around 10 million of those are alive. The health impact People who have survived a stroke have a physical and mental illness and may be more likely to attempt suicide or die by suicide. “Researchers have examined a number of international medical databases citing enter MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, and Google Scholar from the start of each database until September 15, 2020, using database-specific keywords and topic headings for stroke and suicide.
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They analyzed 23 published studies involving more than 2 million people who survived a stroke to examine the link between stroke and suicide. More than 5,500 of those who survived attempted suicide or died by suicide. When researchers compared their analysis with statistics on suicide among the general population, they found that people who survived the stroke had a 73 percent risk of suicide and were more than twice as likely to attempt suicide3. Stroke survivors had a 63 percent higher risk of dying from suicide4. They had a reduced risk of suicide over time “We expected the risk of suicide in those who survived a stroke to be high, but it surprised us that it was 73 percent higher,” Vyas said.
Vyas said, “I hope this study highlights the need to identify the scale and impact of disability in people who have had a stroke and its potential impact on mental health status.” talk about low emotions or depressed feelings being challenging for stroke survivors who are unable to communicate often as a result of the stroke, so health care professionals should consider routine screening of all stroke patients for depressive symptoms and thoughts. suicide, among other mental health conditions, “Vyas concluded.
