Depression and suicide in adults with autism spectrum disorder: A systematic review
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33448/rsd-v11i15.37265Keywords:
Autism; Depression; Suicide; Adults.Abstract
Objective: To identify predominance and risk factors for depression and suicidal ideation/attempts in adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Methods: This is a qualitative, systematic review of the prevalence and risk factors for depression and suicidal ideation/ attempts in adults with ASD. This study has made use of the virtual databases PubMed, LILACS, and SciELO over a period of five years, using keywords such as “autism”, “depression”, “adults” and “suicide” as describers to search for articles. Results: The fifteen articles addressed the high predominance of depression and suicidal ideation/attempts and their risk factors in adults with ASD. Conclusions: Autistic adults are at high risk of developing depression and suicidal ideation and attempts. They are exposed to several risk factors, many of them linked to their own specific characteristics. It is clear that studies on this subject are still in their early stages. Because of this, there are still no specific instruments for the assessment of depression and the risk of suicide in this group. Therefore, it is concluded that there is a need for longitudinal studies to better assess the predominance and risk factors for depression and suicidal ideation/attempts in adults with ASD. Thus, the goal is to develop specific and effective tools for screening and diagnosing these psychiatric pathologies, as well as to increase and improve risk factor delimitation. Consequently, strategies to prevent illnesses in this group could be designed with even more effectiveness.
References
American Psychiatric Association (2013). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th ed, Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association.
Angst, J., Angst, F., & Stassen, H. H. (1999). Suicide risk in patients with major depressive disorder. Journal of clinical psychiatry, 60(2), 57-62.
Arwert, T. G., & Sizoo, B. B. (2020). Self-reported suicidality in male and female adults with autism spectrum disorders: rumination and self-esteem. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 50(10), 3598-3605. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-020-04372-z
Barneveld, P. S., Swaab, H., Fagel, S., Van Engeland, H., & de Sonneville, L. M. (2014). Quality of life: A case-controlled long-term follow-up study, comparing young high-functioning adults with autism spectrum disorders with adults with other psychiatric disorders diagnosed in childhood. Comprehensive psychiatry, 55(2), 302-310.
Campos, C. J. G. (2004). Método de análise de conteúdo: ferramenta para a análise de dados qualitativos no campo da saúde. Revista brasileira de enfermagem, 57, 611-614.
Cassidy, S., Bradley, L., Shaw, R., & Baron-Cohen, S. (2018). Risk markers for suicidality in autistic adults. Molecular Autism, 9(1), 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13229-018-0226-4
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2020). Suicide Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/suicide/
Costa, A. P., Loor, C., & Steffgen, G. (2020). Suicidality in adults with autism spectrum disorder: the role of depressive symptomatology, alexithymia, and antidepressants. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 50(10), 3585-3597. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-020-04433-3
Dell'Osso, L., Carpita, B., Muti, D., Morelli, V., Salarpi, G., Salerni, A., ... & Maj, M. (2019). Mood symptoms and suicidality across the autism spectrum. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 91, 34-38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.comppsych.2019.03.004
Dow, D., Morgan, L., Hooker, J. L., Michaels, M. S., Joiner, T. E., Woods, J., & Wetherby, A. M. (2021). Anxiety, depression, and the interpersonal theory of suicide in a community sample of adults with autism spectrum disorder. Archives of Suicide Research, 25(2), 297-314. . https://doi.org/10.1080/13811118.2019.1678537
Franklin, J. C., Ribeiro, J. D., Fox, K. R., Bentley, K. H., Kleiman, E. M., Huang, X., ... & Nock, M. K. (2017). Risk factors for suicidal thoughts and behaviors: A meta-analysis of 50 years of research. Psychological bulletin, 143(2), 187.
Hand, B. N., Benevides, T. W., & Carretta, H. J. (2020). Suicidal ideation and self-inflicted injury in Medicare enrolled autistic adults with and without co-occurring intellectual disability. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 50(10), 3489-3495. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-019-04345-x
Hedley, D., Uljarević, M., Cai, R. Y., Bury, S. M., Stokes, M. A., & Evans, D. W. (2021). Domains of the autism phenotype, cognitive control, and rumination as transdiagnostic predictors of DSM-5 suicide risk. PloS one, 16(1), e0245562. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0245562
Hedley, D., Uljarević, M., Foley, K. R., Richdale, A., & Trollor, J. (2018). Risk and protective factors underlying depression and suicidal ideation in autism spectrum disorder. Depression and anxiety, 35(7), 648-657. https://doi.org/10.1002/da.22759
Helles, A., Gillberg, I. C., Gillberg, C., & Billstedt, E. (2017). Asperger syndrome in males over two decades: Quality of life in relation to diagnostic stability and psychiatric comorbidity. Autism, 21(4), 458-469.
Hoefelman, A. G., Santos, T. C., Moretti-Pires, R. O. (2012). Métodos e técnicas de Pesquisa Quantitativa Aplicada à Educação Física. Florianópolis: Tribo da Ilha.
Hofvander, B., Delorme, R., Chaste, P., Nydén, A., Wentz, E., Ståhlberg, O., ... & Leboyer, M. (2009). Psychiatric and psychosocial problems in adults with normal-intelligence autism spectrum disorders. BMC psychiatry, 9(1), 1-9.
Hooijer, A. A., & Sizoo, B. B. (2020). Temperament and character as risk factor for suicide ideation and attempts in adults with autism spectrum disorders. Autism Research, 13(1), 104-111. https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.2221
Howlin, P., & Magiati, I. (2017). Autism spectrum disorder: Outcomes in adulthood. Current opinion in psychiatry, 30(2), 69-76.
Moseley, R. L., Gregory, N. J., Smith, P., Allison, C., Cassidy, S., & Baron-Cohen, S. (2022). The relevance of the interpersonal theory of suicide for predicting past-year and lifetime suicidality in autistic adults. Molecular autism, 13(1), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13229-022-00495-5
Radoeva, P. D., Ballinger, K., Ho, T., Webb, S. J., & Stobbe, G. A. (2022). Brief Report: Risk and Protective Factors Associated with Depressive Symptoms among Autistic Adults. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 52(6), 2819-2824. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-021-05085-7
Rai, D., Culpin, I., Heuvelman, H., Magnusson, C. M., Carpenter, P., Jones, H. J., ... & Pearson, R. M. (2018). Association of autistic traits with depression from childhood to age 18 years. JAMA psychiatry, 75(8), 835-843.
Richards, G., Kenny, R., Griffiths, S., Allison, C., Mosse, D., Holt, R., ... & Baron-Cohen, S. (2019). Autistic traits in adults who have attempted suicide. Molecular Autism, 10(1), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13229-019-0274-4
Robison, J. E. (2019). Autism prevalence and outcomes in older adults. Autism Research, 12(3), 370-374. https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.2080
Ruggieri, V. (2020). Autismo, depresión y riesgo de suicidio. MEDICINA (Buenos Aires), 80, 12-16.
Shattuck, P. T., Narendorf, S. C., Cooper, B., Sterzing, P. R., Wagner, M., & Taylor, J. L. (2012). Postsecondary education and employment among youth with an autism spectrum disorder. Pediatrics, 129(6), 1042-1049.
Taylor, J. L., & Seltzer, M. M. (2011). Employment and post-secondary educational activities for young adults with autism spectrum disorders during the transition to adulthood. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 41(5), 566-574.
Weiner, L., Flin, A., Causin, J. B., Weibel, S., & Bertschy, G. (2019). A case study of suicidality presenting as a restricted interest in autism spectrum disorder. BMC psychiatry, 19(1), 1-5. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-019-2122-7
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2022 Larissa Garcez de Oliveira; Juliana Leal Freitas Maia
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
1) Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
2) Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
3) Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.
