Therapeutic interventions for suicide attempts and self-harm in adolescents: systematic review and meta-analysis.

Abstract

Suicidal behavior and self-harm are common in adolescents and are associated with elevated psychopathology, risk of suicide, and demand for clinical services. Despite recent advances in the understanding and treatment of self-harm and links between self-harm and suicide and risk of suicide attempt, progress in reducing suicide death rates has been elusive, with no substantive reduction in suicide death rates over the past 60 years. Extending prior reviews of the literature on treatments for suicidal behavior and repetitive self-harm in youth, this article provides a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) reporting efficacy of specific pharmacological, social, or psychological therapeutic interventions (TIs) in reducing both suicidal and nonsuicidal self-harm in adolescents.