[Self harm in adolescents in Flanders].

BACKGROUND: Deliberate self harm is an important precursor to suicide. Little is known about the epidemiology and circumstances of self harm behaviour that cannot be treated with medication.

AIM: To use international data in order to obtain insight into the prevalence, the circumstances and possible ways of presenting self harm in adolescents in the general population in Flanders.

METHOD: With the frameworks of the Child and Adolescent Self Harm in Europe (case)- study 4500 Flemish adolescents were asked to complete an anonymous self-report questionnaire. results 10.4% of the adolescents questioned admitted to having engaged in self harm on one or more occasions during their life. 7% (males 4.1%, females 10.1%) reported they had engaged in self harm during the past year. Self harm seemed to be strongly associated with a family history of self harm, physical ill-treatment and sexual abuse. Adolescents seldom sought help from adults and hardly ever from professional care workers.

CONCLUSIONS: Deliberate self harm is more common in Flanders than in other countries participating in the case-study. Flanders needs to set up a school-based prevention campaign and should take steps to lower the barriers that currently stop adolescents from seeking professional help.