Suicide Risk Tied to Acne Severity, Not Treatment: Study on Association between Isotretinoin Use, Suicidal Behavior Focuses on Timing of Treatment

Smith, Jennie, Clinical Psychiatry News

A large, retrospective cohort study is the latest to look at the association between isotretinoin and attempted suicide. Concerns about a link between isotretinoin and suicidal behavior have abounded for years, although previous studies have failed to show a conclusive link.

By studying when (before, during, or up to 15 years after treatment) suicidal behavior is most likely to occur in relation to treatment, researchers found that although the risk is increased during and up to 1 year after treatment, such risk is more likely related to the psychological effects associated with the disease - severe acne - than with the isotretinoin, and may be affected by treatment failure.

Pharmacoepidemiologist Anders Sundstrom of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm and colleagues examined named records for 5,756 Swedish patients (aged 15-49 years) who …

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Publication information: Article title: Suicide Risk Tied to Acne Severity, Not Treatment: Study on Association between Isotretinoin Use, Suicidal Behavior Focuses on Timing of Treatment. Contributors: Smith, Jennie - Author. Magazine title: Clinical Psychiatry News. Volume: 38. Issue: 12 Publication date: December 2010. Page number: 48. © 2009 International Medical News Group. COPYRIGHT 2010 Gale Group.

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