Suicide Risk Factors in Bipolar Illness Identified

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Adults with bipolar disorder are at high risk of attempting to commit suicide in their early 30s, usually within 7 to 12 years of the onset of the mental illness, researchers in Taiwan report.

In bipolar disorder, also known as manic depression, people experience periods of deep depression alternating with excessive euphoria, interspersed with periods of normal behavior. The condition can be treated effectively with
lithium.

Research shows that bipolar individuals have a 25% to 60% likelihood of attempting suicide at some point in their lives. Dr. Shang-Ying M. Tsai of Taipei Medical University in Taiwan and colleagues sought to investigate the
risk factors associated with suicide attempts and the point at which patients are most vulnerable
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