SUICIDAL IDEATION IN PSORIASIS

Background. Psoriasis has been associated with depressive disease and case reports of completed suicide. Methods. 217 consenting psoriasis patients completed the Carroll Rating Scale for Depression (CRSD), a 52-item self-rated scale, with four of the items directly addressing wishes to be dead and suicidal ideation. The patients also self-rated the severity of their psoriasis. Results. 9.7% of patients reported a wish to be dead, and 5.5% reported active suicidal ideation at the time of the study. The death wish and suicidal ideation were associated with higher depression scores (P < 0.0001) and higher patient self-ratings of psoriasis severity (P < 0.05). Patient self-reports of psoriasis severity correlated directly with the overall depression scores (r = 0.39), P < 0.0001). Conclusions. The comorbidity between depressive symptoms, suicidal ideation, and psoriasis severity is in contrast with reports that severe depression and suicidal ideation are mainly a feature of life-threatening medical disorders such as malignancies. Our finding may have important implications in the management of psoriasis.