Table 1.
Demographic and clinical characteristics of suicidal and non-suicidal depressed elderly participants.
| Attempters | Ideators | Nonsuicidal Depressed | Non-Psychiatric Controls | F or χ2 | P Value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N | 83 | 43 | 54 | 48 | -- | -- |
| Age* | 69.4 (8.8) | 69.9 (8.5) | 70.7 (8.4) | 69.1 (7.1) | 0.38 | 0.77 |
| Education, yrs* | 13.0 (2.9) | 13.7 (3.4) | 14.2 (2.6) | 14.6 (2.6) | 3.77 | 0.01 |
| %Men** | 51% | 53% | 33% | 52% | 5.69 | 0.13 |
| %White** | 86% | 84% | 81% | 88% | 3.71 | 0.72 |
| %Substance Use Disorders** | 35% | 19% | 17% | -- | 10.21 | 0.04 |
| Cumulative Illness Rating Scale adapted for geriatrics * (CIRS-G) | 8.9 (4.4) | 8.2 (3.1) | 9.7 (3.4) | 7.3 (3.2) | 3.61 | 0.01 |
| Antidepressant exposure*,*** (ATHF) | 2.15(2.2) | 2.67 (2.47) | 1.38 (1.71) | -- | 2.94 | 0.06 |
| 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale* | 22.7 (5.8) | 22.5 (4.9) | 18.7 (3.9) | 2.5 (1.9) | 222.73 | <0.01 |
| Beck Hopelessness Scale* | 10.0 (6.4) | 11.0 (6.4) | 5.7 (5.4) | 1.3 (1.3) | 33.5 | <0.01 |
| Beck Scale of Suicidal Ideation* | 25.0 (5.6) | 15.5 (7.5) | -- | -- | 5.7 | 0.02 |
| Beck Suicidal Intent Scale | 17.6 (4.8) | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- | -- |
*
ANOVA (Age: df= (3,224). Education: df=(3,224), Cumulative Illness Rating Scale adapted for geriatrics: df=(3,216), Antidepressant Treatment History Form: df=(3,132), Hamilton Depression Rating Scale: df=(3,222), Beck Hopelessness Scale: df=(3,212), Beck Scale of Suicidal Ideation: df=(3,211))
**
Chi-Square test (Gender: df=3, Race: df=6, Substance use disorders: df=6)
***
Measured by the Antidepressant Treatment History Form