Intentional self-harm in a tertiary care hospital, rural South India: a study of sociodemographic profile, methods, and associated factors

Background: Intentional self-harm refers to a self-injurious behavior without or with a suicidal intent that has a nonfatal outcome. This term encompasses a broad range of behaviors but is typically defined as deliberately self-initiated harm and involves behaviors such as hanging, poisoning, and cutting without and with a suicide intent.

Aims: To identify different methods adopted for self-harm and to examine the relationship between gender/age and the selected method.

Material and methods: This is a prospective, cross-sectional study that analyzed all cases of intentional self-harm admitted to the Dr. Chandramma Dayananda Sagar Institute of Medical Education and Research from October 2022 to February 2024.

Results: A total of 98 cases that met the inclusion criteria were enrolled in this study. Of the total subjects, 63.27% were female and 36.73% were male, and 88.78% of them used nonviolent self-harming methods. Attempted hanging was the most common violent method (63.64%), while consumption of pesticides (63.21%) was the most common nonviolent method followed by an overdose of medication (27.59%). Interpersonal conflict was the main reason for self-harm in 41.83% of the cases. Only 20 cases were diagnosed with psychiatric illness, namely, depressive episode, emotionally unstable personality disorder, and adjustment disorder.

Conclusion: Self-harm behavior is seen in both individuals with normal mental health and those with psychiatric morbidity. Both sets of people need support to grapple with stress and curb any impulsive acts. A registration and monitoring system for self-harm is thus needed to identify, counsel, and treat such potential cases.