SUICIDE ATTEMPT IN ELDERLY: AN OVERLOOKED COMPLICATION OF LATE-LIFE DEPRESSION

Yhan Batista (Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Airlangga – Dr. Soetomo General Hospital Surabaya, Indonesia)
Novira Widajanti (Division of Geriatrics, Department of Internal Medicine, Universitas Airlangga – Dr. Soetomo General Hospital Surabaya, Indonesia)
Agustina Konginan

CURRENT INTERNAL MEDICINE RESEARCH AND PRACTICE SURABAYA JOURNAL
Vol. 3 No. 1 (2022): CURRENT INTERNAL MEDICINE RESEARCH AND PRACTICE SURABAYA JOURNAL

Suicide attempt in the elderly is underestimated and underreported due to cultural reference. Triggering factors may be the results of stressful life events or acquired late-life depression. An elderly woman, 69-year-old, was rushed to the emergency room due to household cleaning liquid ingestion. There was a history of previous suicide attempts and severe depressive episodes before. Since there was no sign of severe intoxication, then, the patient was treated symptomatically. Comprehensive geriatric and psychiatric assessments concluded that the patient was in a depressive state. The patient was discharged with symptomatic treatment and antidepressants but two weeks later she completed the course by drowning herself in a river.