A groundbreaking study published in the journal BMC Psychiatry showed that combining psychopathological data with inflammatory markers significantly increases the accuracy of predicting the risk of suicidal thoughts in patients with chronic schizophrenia.
Key results
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302 patients participated in the study.
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36.4% reported suicidal thoughts during their lifetime, 8% within the last week.
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Independent predictors were: female gender, high levels of depressive symptoms, and elevated levels of cytokines IL-1beta and IL-6.
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Antipsychotic dosage and symptom severity also significantly influenced risk in the short term.
The authors note that the involvement of IL-6 and IL-1beta demonstrates a close relationship between neuroinflammation and suicidal tendencies in people with schizophrenia. This confirms that inflammatory processes play an equally important role as psychological factors.
Practical implications
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Routine monitoring of psychiatric symptoms combined with tests for inflammatory markers.
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Considering anti-inflammatory interventions as adjunctive therapy.
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Taking gender differences into account in prevention, as women are at higher risk.
The study suggests that integrating psychiatry and immunology could form the basis for new personalized approaches to treating schizophrenia, leading to more accurate risk assessment systems and more effective methods for preventing suicidal behavior.
