Depression and Suicidal Behavior in Adolescents

Med Clin North Am. 2023 Jan;107(1):169-182. doi: 10.1016/j.mcna.2022.04.005. Epub 2022 Oct 28.

Abstract

Depression commonly onsets in adolescence, affecting approximately 1 in 4 female adolescents and 1 in 10 males in the United States. Adolescent depression is a significant risk factor for suicide, the cause of over a third of all American adolescent deaths. Adolescent depression is introduced alongside its developmental and gendered considerations with a focus on important risk factors of adolescent depression, including nonsuicidal self-injury, adverse childhood experiences, and substance abuse. Protective factors and contemporary special topics of the COVID-19 pandemic and social media use are reviewed. Therapeutic options and clinical barriers are highlighted before a summary of findings and conclusion.

Keywords: Adolescence; Adverse childhood experiences; Depression; Development; Gender; Nonsuicidal self-injury; Substance abuse; Suicide.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • COVID-19*
  • Depression / epidemiology
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Pandemics
  • Suicidal Ideation
  • Suicide Prevention*
  • United States / epidemiology