New onset and remission of suicidal ideation among a depressed adult sample

Background: previous research has demonstrated that suicidal ideation often predicts suicide completion. Methods: the present study examined clinical and phenomenological variables associated with the presence, development and remission of suicidal ideation among depressed adults. The sample (n=81) was derived from subjects enrolled in the Duke Clinical Research Center for the Study of Depression in Late Life. Results: greater pessimistic thinking at baseline predicted the development of suicidal ideation one year later and the older a person was when he or she first experienced depression, the more likely he or she was to report remission from suicidal ideation one year following onset. Limitations: longitudinal analyses were based on relatively small samples. Variables that were not significant in these analyses might be in a larger sample. Conclusions: the longitudinal design of this study mitigates limitations associated with cross-sectional or retrospective designs and advances our understanding of a clinical profile associated with the development and remission of suicidal thought