The association between suicide risk and self-esteem in Japanese university students with major depressive episodes of major depressive disorder

BACKGROUND The suicide risk among young adults is related to multiple factors; therefore, it is difficult to predict and prevent suicidal behavior. AIM We conducted the present study to reveal the most important factors relating to suicidal ideation in Japanese university students with major depressive episodes (MDEs) of major depressive disorder (MDD). METHODS The subjects were 30 Japanese university students who had MDEs of MDD, and were aged between 18 and 26 years old. They were divided into two groups - without suicide risk group (n=15), and with suicide risk group (n=15) - based on the results of the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview. Additionally, healthy controls were recruited from the same population (n=15). All subjects completed the self-assessment scales including the Beck Depression Inventory 2nd edition (BDI-II), the Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS), Rosenberg's Self-Esteem Scale (RSES), and SF-36v2™ (The Medical Outcomes Study 36-item short-form health survey version 2), and they were all administered a battery of neuropsychological tests. RESULTS The RSES score of the suicide risk group was significantly lower than the RSES score of the without suicide risk group, whereas the BDI-II score and the BHS score were not significantly different between the two groups. The mean social functioning score on the SF-36v2 of the with suicide risk group was significantly lower than that of the without suicide risk group. CONCLUSION The individual's self-esteem and social functioning may play an important role in suicide risk among young adults with MDEs of MDD.