Tendency to violence and suicidal ideation in school-aged youths in a city of the peruvian amazon

Abstract

Both suicide and violence among adolescents are prevalent phenomena in the world. Objectives. To determine the prevalence of suicidal ideation and its association with tendency to violence towards others, in school-aged youths. Material and methods. Analytical cross-sectional study conducted in the Peruvian Amazon city of Pucallpa, between March and April 2008. Questions about the tendency to violence and suicidal ideation were applied from adapted questionnaire of mental health. The sample was selected systematically, were 530 adolescents from 12 to 19 years-old in the three largest schools in the city. Results. 31.3% of those polled presented passive wishes to die, 21.1% thought to commit suicide and 18.1% attempted suicide at least once in life, predominantly in females and in the group from 15 to 19 years-old. The trend of violence is expressed in thought (51.7%) and violent behavior (18.7%) predominantly in males (p<0,001). By multivariate analysis, suicidal ideation was associated with violent behavior (OR = 4.9 IC95% 1.4-17.5) and not with heteroaggressive thinking (OR = 2.1 IC95% 0.9-4.9). Conclusions. There is high prevalence of suicidal ideation and have thought to commit suicide was associated with violent behavior. Track and treating violent adolescents can contribute to decrease violence and risk of suicide.