Assessment of neuropsychological test results in adolescents aged between 12-18 with a history of suicide attempt and determination of sensitivity and specificity of the columbia suicide severity rating scale

Objective: Suicide is the intentional termination of one's own life, one of the leading causes of young people death. Suicide has been reported to be associated with executive functions such as mental flexibility, inhibition and impulsivity, and parental attitudes. Standardized scales are needed for defining and preventing suicidal behavior. Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS) is the gold standard in the world. This study aimed to determine the relationship between cognitive functions and the sensitivity and specificity of C-SSRS in suicidally high-risk groups. Method: Twenty-four participants with suicide attempts between the ages of 12-18 and age-education-gender matched 21 participants without suicide attempts were included. Stroop Test, Stop-Signal Task, Go/NoGo Task, Modified-Wisconsin Card Sorting Test, Parenting Style Scale (PSS) and C-SSRS were applied to all participants. Neuropsychological test scores (NPT) and parenting styles were compared between groups. Correlations between NPT, parenting styles and C-SSRS were investigated. The sensitivity and specificity of the C-SSRS subtests were analyzed by ROC curves. Results: Suicide attempt was associated with smoking [χ2(1)=9,612;p=0.002] and alcohol consumption [χ2(1)=6,131;p=0.013]. Beck Depression Scale scores were higher in individuals with suicide attempts than those without (p=0.001). There were no significant differences between neuropsychological test scores. C-SSRS lifetime suicidal ideation subscale differentiates suicide attempters with a sensitivity of 81% and specificity of 84%. Conclusion: Relation between smoking and alcohol consumption and suicide is thought to be important for preventing suicide and risk assessment. Results supported that C-SSRS is a validated scale for distinguishing suicide attempters in clinical and experimental settings. Cognitive performance in suicide should be investigated with a larger sample.