Eating disorders, especially anorexia nervosa, are associated with an increased risk of attempted suicide in young women.

Risk factors: Baseline assessment and follow up were carried out by face to face diagnostic interviews and questionnaires administered by a trained assessor. At baseline, presence of eating disorder was confirmed (Structured Interview for DSM-III Personality Disorders; Eating Disorders Inventory) and current and lifetime psychiatric disorders assessed (Hopkins Symptom Checklist-90). Follow up interviews were carried out using the LIFE-EAT-II semistructured interview, which assessed symptoms of eating disorders, comorbid psychopathology, treatment, and psychosocial function. Time to first suicide attempt was calculated using Kaplan-Meier survival analysis. Cox proportional hazards ratios and multiple regression analyses were used to identify predictors of suicide attempts.