# A Latent Profile Analysis of Psychosis Symptoms to Examine Distress and Depression as Pathways to Suicide Ideation Among Individuals in an Early Phase of Psychosis Illness

## TL;DR

This study identifies different symptom profiles in early psychosis and shows how distress and depression can lead to suicide ideation, offering insights for targeted interventions.

## Contribution

The novel contribution is the use of latent profile analysis to identify distinct symptom groups and demonstrate how depression and distress mediate suicide risk in these groups.

## Key findings

- Three distinct symptom profiles were identified: balanced symptoms, high positive/general symptoms, and high negative symptoms.
- Distress and depression mediated the relationship between psychosis symptoms and suicide ideation in two of the identified groups.
- The mediation model varied across the identified symptom profiles, suggesting heterogeneous mechanisms of suicide risk.

## Abstract

Suicide rates are high among individuals in first episode psychosis and there is a critical need to better understand drivers of suicide risk to inform treatment efforts. This study identified profiles of psychosis symptoms and examined a mediation model of depression and distress as mechanisms in the relationships between psychosis symptoms and suicide ideation by latent profiles.

Data were obtained from the Human Connectome Project for Early Psychosis (n = 166) of individuals between 16 and 35 years of age who had onset of affective or non‐affective psychosis within 5 years of consent. Data were analysed using Latent Profile Analysis (LPA) and Structural Equation Modelling in MPlus.

LPA revealed the following groups: (1) relatively lower and more balanced levels of symptoms, (2) highest positive and general symptoms and (3) highest negative symptoms. Findings indicated the relationships in the model differed between by LPA groups. Distress and depression functioned as mediators between psychosis symptoms and suicide ideation for Groups 1 and 2.

A better understanding of the roles that distress and depression play in the relationships between psychosis symptoms and suicide ideation can help inform modifiable targets of early intervention and subsequently decrease risk for suicide.