Samomorilnost v starosti: kognitivni upad kot dejavnik tveganja ali zaščite?

The increasing elderly population in Slovenia and globally has led to a rise in the risk of suicide, making suicidality an important issue in gerontopsychiatry. In order to implement preventive measures, it is crucial to identify specific risk factors for this patient population. This paper focuses on the relationship between cognitive decline and suicide, which is an important but less discussed issue to date in geriatrics. We aim to assess whether cognitive decline acts as a risk or possibly a protective factor for suicidal behaviour. Additionally, we explore and highlight the significance of the timing of dementia diagnosis and the age of the individuals, as well as the impact of psychiatric comorbidities. The risk of suicide appears to be higher in younger age groups and in the presence of a recent diagnosis of dementia, but remains significant even in advanced stages of dementia. We aim to compare the risk according to the different subtypes of dementia, and in addition to Alzheimer's, the risk appears to be markedly increased in the frontotemporal subtype. We try to provide potential interventions at multiple levels of healthcare and suggest avenues for further research, particularly within the context of Slovenia.