Familial and Individual Correlates of Nonsuicidal Self-Injury in the Offspring of Mood-Disordered Parents

Objective:To examine the demographic and clinical correlates of nonsuicidal self-injury. Method:This is a cross-sectional analysis of a longitudinal cohort study of the familial transmission of suicidal behavior, conducted at referral centers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and New York, New York. Participants included 291 probands with DSM-IV mood disorder, one-half of whom had attempted suicide, and 507 of their offspring. The primary outcome assessed was nonsuicidal self-injury in offspring. Psychosocial correlates of nonsuicidal self-injury were determined by comparing personal, parental, and familial characteristics of offspring with and without nonsuicidal self-injury, assessed using a variety of interview and self-report measures at study entry. Data were collected between August 1998 and August 2007. Results: Of 507 offspring, 7.7% (n = 39) had engaged in nonsuicidal self-injury. The most salient correlates of nonsuicidal self-injury on multivariate logistic regression were diagnosis of depression (OR = 3.78, P < .001) and greater aggression (OR = 1.07, P = .01), depressive symptoms (OR = 1.59, P = .009), and suicidal ideation (OR = 1.24, P = .004). Parental history of abuse, as well as family histories of suicide attempt and nonsuicidal self-injury, was noncontributory. Conclusions: Nonsuicidal self-injury is associated with the presence and severity of depression, suicidal ideation, and behavioral dysregulation. On multivariate analysis, only individual predictors remained significant; this result is distinct from that for correlates of suicide attempt reported in this sample, for which familial variables played a significant role. J Clin Psychiatry 2012;73(6):813-820 (c) Copyright 2012 Physicians Postgraduate Press, Inc.