Department of Communication Sciences & Disorders, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC, USA.
Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI, USA.
J Fluency Disord. 2021 Mar;67:105820. doi: 10.1016/j.jfludis.2020.105820. Epub 2020 Nov 27.
The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation and living with stuttering while accounting for time, sex, and health-related confounders.
The data for this study come from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, a nationally representative survey study that has followed 13,564 respondents over the course of 14 years. Responses to the question "Do you have a problem with stuttering or stammering?" at two time points were used to establish stuttering and non-stuttering groups. Regression analysis, propensity score matching, and structural equation modeling were used.
Compared to their fluent counterparts, males and females reported significantly elevated symptoms of depression. Although symptoms of depression among males who stutter were stable over time, depressive symptoms among females who stutter increased with age. Compared to males who do not stutter, males who stutter were significantly more likely to report feelings of suicidal ideation. There were no differences in suicidal ideation between females who do and do not stutter.
Speech-language pathologists should be aware of the associations between stuttering and depressive symptoms, as well as the increased risk for suicidal ideation among males who stutter. Clinicians should be knowledgeable about symptoms of depression and suicidal ideation and be familiar with processes to refer as needed.
本研究旨在调查抑郁症状和自杀意念与口吃之间的关系，同时考虑到时间、性别和与健康相关的混杂因素。
本研究的数据来自全国青少年至成人健康纵向研究，这是一项具有全国代表性的调查研究，对 13564 名受访者进行了 14 年的跟踪调查。通过两次调查中对“您是否存在口吃或结巴问题？”这一问题的回答，将参与者分为口吃者和非口吃者两组。本研究采用了回归分析、倾向评分匹配和结构方程模型。
与流利的口吃者相比，男性和女性报告的抑郁症状明显更为严重。尽管口吃男性的抑郁症状随时间保持稳定，但口吃女性的抑郁症状随年龄增长而增加。与不口吃的男性相比，口吃男性更有可能报告有自杀意念。不口吃的女性和口吃的女性之间在自杀意念方面没有差异。
言语语言病理学家应该意识到口吃与抑郁症状之间的关联，以及口吃男性自杀意念风险增加的情况。临床医生应该了解抑郁症状和自杀意念的症状，并熟悉转介的流程。
