Prevalence of Suicidality among Patients of Major Depressive Disorder

Background: Suicidality is a global health problem, with an estimated 800,000 cases per year, about after every 40 seconds one person lose life due to suicide. Major Depressive disorder accounts for 87% of completed suicidal events. This study is carried out to determine the prevalence of Suicidal Ideations, Suicidal Plans and Suicidal Attempt among patients with major depressive disorders attending neuropsychiatric unit of Nangarhar University teaching Hospital, located in Jalalabad city of Nangarhar, Afghanistan. Methods and materials: A cross-sectional study was carried out from November 1, 2023, to April 30, 2024, among patients of Major Depressive Disorder in neuropsychiatric unit of Nangarhar University teaching hospital, Jalalabad, Afghanistan. The sample size was 423, and all patients of Major Depressive Disorder aged 18 years or above were included randomly in study through Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) and International Statistical Classification of Diseases (ICD) criteria for Major Depressive Disorder. Data was collected by a well-designed questionnaire with standard questions about suicidal ideations, suicidal plan and suicidal attempts from various studies. Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 28. Findings: A total number of 423 patients of Major Depressive Disorder participated in the study. Of them 267 (63.1%) were females and 156 (36.9%) were males. Among 423 patients with major Depression 195 (46.1%) had suicidal Ideations and . Conclusion: The study found a high prevalence of Suicidal Ideations, Suicidal Plan and Suicidal Attempt among patients of Major depressive disorders, highlighting the need for further studies to investigate the causes and associated factors of Suicidal Ideations, Suicidal Plan and Suicidal Attempts among patient suffering from major depressive disorders.