The Study of Self-mutilation in Patients with Psychiatric Disorders Admitted to the Lavasani Hospital in 2014-2015

Self-mutilation can be defined as a deliberate behavior that directly damages the body and damages body tissues or even amputations which, for a few minutes, deprives a person of the feeling or misery position. This study was performed to examine different types of self-mutilation in patients suffering from psychiatric disorders and its relation with the type of illness among patients attending to Lavasani Hospital in 2014-15. This study is a cross-sectional observation. Forty-two patients suffering from psychiatric illnesses who had performed self-mutilation entered the study. The prevalence of the type of self-mutilation, the used device, and its relation with the type of mental disorder was analyzed. The Results showed that 90.5% of patients used sharp objects, 4.8% used fire, 2.4% used rocks, and 2.4% used other devices for self-mutilation. 76.2% of patients injured the organs, 19% injured the head and neck, 24% injured the body, and 2.4% injured the stomach area. Age and sex did not have a direct correlation with the place and device used (P>0.05), but type of disorder did show a significant relationship with the place and device used (P=0.001). It is concluded that self-mutilation in mental patients is done mainly using sharp objects in the organs.