Psychobiology of Suicidal Behavior

📓 Approximately 25,000-30,000 Americans die by suicide each year. The rate of suicide among people under the age of 40 years has doubled in the last 25 years. Suicide was Ejnce assumed to be a component of largely depressive disorders. Today it is a recognized component of many nondepressive psychiatric syndromes. This has led to reformulation of the factors contributing to suicide. It is now regarded as the end point of some combination of genetic, psychobiological, psychosocial, and drug-related factors. A multidisciplinary approach is required to understand the interplay of these factors To meet this challenge, this volume brings together social scientists, epi­demiologists, psychiatrists, psychologists, statisticians, and geneticists from the United Hates and overseas. An interactive model of suicide evolves from these contributions that will facilitate hypothesis generation, design of experiments, and communications between scientific disciplines. This volume is unique in highlighting neurobiological porrelates of suicidal behavior and thereby has the dual goal of, firstly, complementing pe information from psychosocial risk factors in the assessment of suicidality; and secondly, the data presented suggest immediately feasible psychopharmacological treat-pent programs that target the suicidal behavior directly. Improved detection of at-psk individuals will lead to contact with skilled professionals who can diagnose and treat the underlying psychiatric disorders that also ...