Many teens with acne think about suicide

By Tamara McLean November 13, 2006 02:25pm

A THIRD of teenagers with bad acne have suicidal thoughts and more than 10 per cent have tried to kill themselves, a landmark study has found.

The New Zealand survey of 9570 high school students aged 12 to 18 was one of the largest to investigate the link between acne, anxiety, depression and suicide.

The study, in the Australasian Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health, found 24 per cent of those with problem acne reported depressive symptoms and 9 per cent believed they had anxiety.

About 35 per cent of the 1329 students with problematic acne admitted having suicidal thoughts, with 13 per cent saying they had attempted suicide.

The risks did not differ between ages, genders or ethnic backgrounds, according to Dr Peter Watson and his University of Auckland colleagues.

"There is now increasing recognition of the association of skin disease with mental health," Dr Watson said.

"At this age young people are developing a sense of identity and self-worth, and so they are potentially vulnerable to any adverse psychological effects associated with acne."

The study found students may have suicidal thoughts without anxiety or depressive symptoms.

It was vital that health professionals asked about suicide directly rather than relying on screening for mood problems, Dr Watson said.

"Our data suggest that doctors who see young people with problematic acne have a particularly important role to play in screening these young people for depression, anxiety and suicidal thoughts and behaviour."

The relationship between acne, depression and suicide had not been fully investigated but it may be that the skin problem was not to blame for the emotional issues, the team said.

Students with depression and anxiety may be more likely to rate their acne as more severe, or it may be another factor in adolescence that affected both problems simultaneously.

Acne medication may also influence depression and anxiety, Dr Watson said.

---