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Suicide, suicide ideation and self-harming behaviours in a Day Hospital for children and adolescents with ASD

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 August 2025

A. Alvarez ,
N. Santamaria ,
V. Bote ,
R. Medina ,
B. Sanchez ,
J. A. Monreal  and
A. Hervás
A. Alvarez*
Affiliation:
Mental Health, University Hospital Mutua Terrassa, Terrassa, Spain
N. Santamaria
Affiliation:
Mental Health, University Hospital Mutua Terrassa, Terrassa, Spain
V. Bote
Affiliation:
Mental Health, University Hospital Mutua Terrassa, Terrassa, Spain
R. Medina
Affiliation:
Mental Health, University Hospital Mutua Terrassa, Terrassa, Spain
B. Sanchez
Affiliation:
Mental Health, University Hospital Mutua Terrassa, Terrassa, Spain
J. A. Monreal
Affiliation:
Mental Health, University Hospital Mutua Terrassa, Terrassa, Spain
A. Hervás
Affiliation:
Mental Health, University Hospital Mutua Terrassa, Terrassa, Spain
*
*Corresponding author.

Abstract

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Introduction

The ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) Day Therapeutic Unit is a third-level care unit. It consists of 20 beds for the evaluation and treatment of children and adolescents with ASD. In recent years, there has been a significant increase in suicidal thoughts, self-harm and completed suicide in these patients. At the ASD Day Hospital, we offer multidisciplinary and intensive treatment to these patients, but we also want to delve into the causes of this situation: real prevalence, existing psychiatric comorbidities, gender differences, etc. with the aim of being able to improve our clinical and care dedication

Objectives

The objective is to know the clinical and sociodemographic characteristics of patients with thoughts of death, self-harm and completed suicide, in our autism day hospital.

Methods

A review of the clinical history of patients included in the ASD Day Hospital from 2021 to 2023 (both complete) is carried out. The psychiatric comorbidity, age of the patients, gender, multidisciplinary treatment received and average stay are analyzed.

Results

During the years 2021, 2022 and 2023, a total of 255 children (92 women and 163 men) were treated in HD for ASD, with an average age of 11.64 years for women and 11.44 for men. It was found that 40 (15 + 22) of them had suicidal thoughts, where (9 + 16) were women, (6 + 6) men. One patient committed suicide (woman), and 25 presented self-harming behaviors (16 women and 9 men). The most frequently found comorbidities were: anxiety, depression, ADHD and conduct disorders. And the most frequently prescribed drug was fluoxetine, followed by aripiprazole.

Conclusions

Patients with ASD have a high comorbidity with anxiety, depression and behavioural disorders, probably as a consequence of the ongoing socio-family requirements they present. This situation leads to an increase in the prevalence of harmful behaviours and thoughts of death in underage patients, occasionally leading to suicide.

Work on social skills, as well as multidisciplinary intervention, improves the clinical situation of these patients, which should be considered an economic and moral investment for future generations.

Disclosure of Interest

None Declared

Information

Type
Abstract
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 68 , Special Issue S1: Abstracts of the 33rd European Congress of Psychiatry , April 2025 , pp. S535
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of European Psychiatric Association
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