Maddox Brenna B, Trubanova Andrea, White Susan W
1 Virginia Tech, USA.
2 Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, USA.
Autism. 2017 May;21(4):412-422. doi: 10.1177/1362361316644731. Epub 2016 May 12.
Recent studies have examined non-suicidal self-injury in community and clinical samples, but there is no published research on non-suicidal self-injury in individuals with autism spectrum disorder. This lack of research is surprising, since individuals with autism spectrum disorder have high rates of risk factors for non-suicidal self-injury, including depression and poor emotion regulation skills. Using an online survey, we examined non-suicidal self-injury methods, frequency, severity, functions, and initial motivations in adults with autism spectrum disorder ( n = 42). We also compared their non-suicidal self-injury characteristics to those of a gender-matched group of adults without autism spectrum disorder ( n = 42). Of the participants with autism spectrum disorder, 50% reported a history of non-suicidal self-injury. This proportion is higher than non-suicidal self-injury rates previously reported for college students, adult community samples, and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder, which suggests that adults with autism spectrum disorder have increased risk for engaging in non-suicidal self-injury. Women with autism spectrum disorder were significantly more likely to endorse non-suicidal self-injury, relative to men with autism spectrum disorder. A history of non-suicidal self-injury was not related to current depression or emotion dysregulation for the participants with autism spectrum disorder. Non-suicidal self-injury characteristics among the adults with autism spectrum disorder were similar to non-suicidal self-injury in adults without autism spectrum disorder. These preliminary findings highlight the need for increased awareness and further research about non-suicidal self-injury within autism spectrum disorder.
近期研究已对社区和临床样本中的非自杀性自伤行为进行了调查，但尚无关于自闭症谱系障碍个体非自杀性自伤行为的已发表研究。这种研究缺失令人惊讶，因为自闭症谱系障碍个体具有较高的非自杀性自伤风险因素发生率，包括抑郁和情绪调节技能较差。我们通过在线调查，研究了自闭症谱系障碍成年患者（n = 42）的非自杀性自伤方法、频率、严重程度、功能及初始动机。我们还将他们的非自杀性自伤特征与一组性别匹配的无自闭症谱系障碍成年患者（n = 42）进行了比较。在自闭症谱系障碍参与者中，50%报告有非自杀性自伤史。这一比例高于先前报道的大学生、成年社区样本及自闭症谱系障碍青少年的非自杀性自伤率，这表明自闭症谱系障碍成年患者进行非自杀性自伤的风险增加。相对于自闭症谱系障碍男性患者，自闭症谱系障碍女性患者更有可能认可非自杀性自伤行为。对于自闭症谱系障碍参与者而言，非自杀性自伤史与当前抑郁或情绪失调无关。自闭症谱系障碍成年患者的非自杀性自伤特征与无自闭症谱系障碍成年患者的非自杀性自伤特征相似。这些初步研究结果凸显了提高对自闭症谱系障碍中非自杀性自伤行为的认识并开展进一步研究的必要性。
