Neuropsychological functioning and suicidal behaviours in patients with first‐episode psychosis: A systematic review

Abstract

Introduction Suicidal behaviour is particularly frequent in patients with psychosis. Therefore, prevention is a key objective of mental health policies. The aim of the current work is to systematically review the association between neurocognitive functioning and suicidal behaviour in patients with first‐episode psychosis (FEP). Material and Methods Of the 3051 studies reviewed, only 7 met the inclusion criteria. Documents in English from their earliest date of coverage until January 2022 were searched for in the following databases: PubMed, Science Direct, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, PsycINFO (ProQuest), and Springerlink. We used the PICO strategy to collect and categorize the data from each selected manuscript. Results Overall, the results showed that the risk of suicidal behaviour is higher for FEP patients in the presence of a number of factors: poorer general neuropsychological functioning (except for working memory), poorer social cognition, more depressive symptoms, longer duration of untreated psychosis, higher awareness of the illness, poorer premorbid adjustment, and more frequent cannabis use. Discussion Comprehensive general neuropsychology and assessment of social cognition, together with routine clinical record keeping, may help to identify FEP patients at a greater risk of attempting suicide.

Neurodevelopmental Disorders and Suicide: A Narrative Review

“…The Center for Disease Control and Prevention survey data reported that 14% of high school students seriously considered killing themselves, 6% attempted suicide in the previous year, and 2% required medical attention [ 5 , 6 ]. However, suicidality within the pediatric population has been more often reported in adolescents diagnosed with psychotic disorders, mostly in the presence of positive symptoms, depression, and anxiety disorders [ 7 ]. Very high risk was also found in young patients with bipolar disorder, specifically in bipolar disorder with psychotic symptoms [ 8 ], panic, and conduct and oppositional defiant disorder [ 9 ].…”