Acute Alcohol Use and Suicidal Behavior: A Review of the Literature

Abstract

Although there is a substantial literature of published studies on acute alcohol use and suicidal behavior, the majority of studies focus on completed suicide and report prevalence estimates. Findings from such studies are subject to several possible sources of bias and have not advanced our knowledge of mechanisms in the association between acute alcohol use and suicidal behavior. The case-crossover design may help to overcome some limitations of these studies and facilitate evaluation of associations and possible causal mechanisms by which acute alcohol use is linked to suicidal behavior.