Prevalence of Brief Suicidal Crisis in Psychiatric Settings

Recruiting now

Conditions studied: Suicidal Crisis, Psychiatric Disorder

In brief

France is among the countries with one of the highest suicide rates in the world, far above those of its neighboring countries \[Wasserman et al., 2012\]. Suicide is the second leading cause of death among 15-24-year-olds, just after road traffic accidents, and the leading cause of death among 25-34-year-olds. Current models emphasize the variability of suicidal trajectories and the possible fluctuation in the duration of suicidal crises: for some individuals, the crisis evolves rapidly and explosively (brief), whereas for others, distress becomes more chronic, often in connection with underlying psychiatric disorders \[Stanley, Brodsky, and Monahan, 2023\]. In this context, the concept of a 'brief suicidal crisis' is an emerging one in psychiatry. It is characterized by an acute phase of psychological vulnerability, during which the main risk is progression to suicidal behavior, but it remains a temporary and reversible psychic crisis (lasting less than 24 hours). The crisis state is marked by a sudden inability to mobilize one's usual coping resources in the face of difficulties, making the individual highly vulnerable. Nevertheless, this concept has been little described, and a better assessment seems desirable, particularly in populations consulting a psychiatrist. Indeed, around 25% of people who die by suicide had consulted a psychiatrist in the month before their death \[Luoma et al., 2002\], yet few data are available on this topic. Primary objective is to assess the prevalence of brief suicidal crisis episodes (lasting less than 24 hours) over the past 12 months among patients attending outpatient psychiatric care and within a sample of patients from a population catchment area in the Clermont-Ferrand region.

Key facts

Study ID

NCT07740356

Run by

University Hospital, Clermont-Ferrand

People needed

150

Starts

2026-09-01

Expected to finish

2026-12-31

Last updated by the study team

2026-07-31

Who can join

Age: 18 and older. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.

You may qualify if…

• Any adult patient consulting the psychiatrist in his/her office during the recruitment period, regardless of the reason for the consultation, and who has given consent to participate in this study.

You may not qualify if…

• Minor patients, or patients who refuse to participate in the study.
• Patients who have already completed the self-administered questionnaires previously (e.g., a second consultation within the same week).
• Patients unable to understand and complete the self-administered questionnaires (cognitive impairment, difficulty understanding French, etc.).

Where it is running

• CHU de Clermont-ferrand — Clermont-Ferrand, France (enrolling)

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

Trial information comes from ClinicalTrials.gov and is refreshed daily. TrialsForMe does not provide medical care and does not run the studies it lists.