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Suizidversuch durch Schlangenbiss

Kasuistik und Literaturübersicht

Attempted suicide by snake bite

Case report and literature survey

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Zusammenfassung

Ungewöhnliche Suizidversuche bleiben häufig unentdeckt und bizarre Methoden können als Hinweis auf eine psychotische Genese gewertet werden. Wir berichten über den Versuch einer Selbsttötung durch den Biss einer Puffotter und geben eine kurze Literaturübersicht über weitere archaische Selbstverletzungen. Aufgrund der zunehmend einfachen Verfügbarkeit von Giftschlangen und der guten Kontakte suizidaler Patienten über das Internet ist für die Zukunft mit einer Zunahme ähnlicher Ereignisse zu rechnen. Bei ungewöhnlichen Unfällen sollte stets die Möglichkeit eines Suizidversuches in Betracht gezogen werden.

Summary

Unusual suicide attempts often remain undetected, and bizarre methods can be a clue to psychotic origin. We report a suicide attempt by proxy – the bite of a puff adder – and provide a brief literature survey about further archaic self-injurious behaviour. Due to the easy availability of venomous snakes and the close networking of suicidal patients via the internet, an increase in similar cases can be anticipated. A failed suicide attempt should always be considered in patients surviving bizarre accidents.

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Correspondence to T. Strubel.

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Strubel, T., Birkhofer, A., Eyer, F. et al. Suizidversuch durch Schlangenbiss. Nervenarzt 79, 604–606 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00115-008-2431-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00115-008-2431-4

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