Familial Transmission of Mood Disorders: Convergence and Divergence with Transmission of Suicide Behavior

• NCJ Number: 207322
• Journal: Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry Volume: 43 Issue: 10 Dated: October 2004 Pages: 1259-1266
• Author(s): David A. Brent M.D.; Maria Oquendo M.D.; Boris Birmaher M.D.; Laurence Greenhill M.D.; David Kolko Ph.D.; Barbara Stanley Ph.D.; Jamie Zelazny B.S.N; Beth Brodsky Ph.D.; Nadine Melhem Ph.D.; Steven P. Ellis Ph.D.; J. John Mann M.D.
• Date Published: October 2004
• Length: 8 pages
• Grant Number(s): MH56612; MH56390; MH55123; MH66371; MH62185
• Sponsoring Agency: National Institute of Mental Health
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study examined the risk factors for familial transmission of mood disorder and suicidal behavior.

Abstract

Adolescent mood disorder is highly familial and has been linked with suicidal behavior in adolescents. As such, it is important to gain a better understanding of the factors relate to the familial transmission of mood disorder and how they relate to suicidal behavior. Data were drawn from a sample of 141 parents, which included suicide attempters and nonattempters, and their 285 children, older than age 10. Participants aged 18 and older were assessed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV, the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children-Present and Lifetime Version, and the Brown-Goodwin Lifetime History of Aggression. Children aged 10 to 18 were assessed using the Children’s Hostility Inventory, the Barratt Impulsivity Scale, and the Childhood Experiences Questionnaire, among others. Results of univariate, logistic, Cox regression, and path analyses indicated that a parental history of sexual abuse was related to an increased risk of offspring mood disorder; this relationship was mediated by offspring impulsive aggression, sexual abuse, and anxiety disorder. Suicide attempts among offspring were mainly related to offspring mood disorder, offspring sexual abuse, and impulsive aggression. Higher levels of offspring impulsive aggression were related to earlier onset of mood disorder. Thus, the familial transmission of mood disorder and suicidal behavior shares similar but not identical risk factors. The clinical implications are that high-risk families should be targeted for the prevention of early-onset mood disorder in an effort to decrease the transmission of suicidal behavior. Future research should focus on confirming these findings by a prospective follow-up study. Tables, figures, references