Risk and Protective Factor for Suicide Attempt in Iran: A Matched Case-Control Study

In order to generate local evidence, a case-control study was designed to explore risk factors for suicide attempts (SA) in one of the larger cities in the southeast of Iran–Kerman. From one of the main referral hospitals, 300 cases and 300 age- and sex-matched controls were recruited. On top of demographic variables, the following variables were compared in the two groups: personality traits, psychological condition, religiosity, coping skills, general health, and recent stressful events. Having adjusted for recent stressful events as the most important factor (OR = 1.66, P-value < 0.001), the main significant variables were: general health (1.04, P = 0.02), the support of friends (OR = 0.95, P-value = 0.04), being problem-focused mentality (OR = 0.88, P-value = 0.005), and intrinsic religiousness (OR = 0.86, P-value = 0.01). Although, recent stress increased the risk of SA considerably, other factors such as general health, friends’ support, and being problem-focused may predispose subjects independently. Conversely, intrinsic religious beliefs and close social networks may have protective effects. Therefore, a multi-disciplinary approach is recommended to minimize the burden of SA in Iran.