Self-harm and Suicidality Experiences of Middle-Age and Older Adults With vs. Without High Autistic Traits.

This study looked at self-harm and suicide thoughts in middle-aged and older adults with high autism traits. Researchers found that people with high autism traits were 5-6 times more likely to have thoughts of suicide or engage in self-harm compared to others their age. This increased risk remained even when considering depression. The findings suggest older autistic adults may need extra mental health support and monitoring for suicide risk.

This cross-sectional study examined self-harm and suicidal behaviours in middle-age and older adults with high autistic traits compared to age/sex-matched controls using PROTECT study data. The study found 276 adults with high autistic traits had significantly elevated rates of suicidal ideation, deliberate self-harm, and suicidal self-harm compared to 10,495 controls, representing a 5-6 fold increased likelihood. These associations remained significant even when controlling for depression symptoms, suggesting autistic traits independently contribute to suicide risk in this age group. The findings highlight a critical mental health vulnerability in older autistic adults that warrants targeted intervention and support strategies.

Clinicians should implement enhanced suicide risk screening for older autistic adults. Mental health services need age-appropriate suicide prevention strategies for this population. Regular monitoring and targeted interventions may be necessary given the substantially elevated risk that persists independent of depression.

Cross-sectional design prevents causal inferences. Study relies on self-reported autistic traits rather than formal autism diagnosis. Sample may not be representative of all older autistic adults. Specific demographic characteristics of the high autistic traits group are not detailed in the abstract.

Suicide has been identified as a leading cause of premature death in autistic populations. Elevated autistic traits have also been associated with higher rates of self-harm, suicidal ideation, and suicidal self-harm in the general population, but this has yet to be examined in older age. Using baseline cross-sectional data from the PROTECT study, middle-age and older adults with high autistic traits (n = 276) had significantly higher rates of suicidal ideation, deliberate self-harm, and suicidal self-harm than an age/sex-matched comparison group (n = 10,495). These differences represented a 5- to 6-fold increase in likelihood for self-harming and suicidality.

These findings, which remained when controlling for depression symptoms, suggest that middle-age and older adults with high autistic traits may be particularly at risk of self-harm and suicidal behaviours.