Digital comparison of healthy young adults and borderline patients engaged in non-suicidal self-injury

BACKGROUND: It still remains unclear whether non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) in young adult populations represents an actual symptom leading to psychiatric illness, constitutes a disorder itself or is rather a cultural peer influence. The purpose of this web-based qualitative cross-sectional study was to characterize NSSI (type of injury, frequency, tools, body parts, circumstances) in 50 patients with borderline personality disorder (NSSI + BPD) in direct comparison with 50 age and gender matched non-clinical young adults (NSSI − BPD), all of them currently or previously engaged in NSSI. METHODS: Self-harming participants completed an open-access, anonymous 75-items questionnaire including the temperament questionnaire briefTEMPS-M. RESULTS: The mean age of NSSI onset was 20.56 ± 6.36 (NSSI + BPD) and 17.5 ± 9.28 years (NSSI − BPD), respectively (p = 0.261). NSSI − BPD participants (1) rarely sought out medical treatment (p < 0.001) and differed significantly from BPD patients; They (2) reported more often fear and disappointment as feelings preceding their self-harm (p < 0.001 each); (3) cut themselves in more locations (p = 0.005) and (4) in rather hidden areas (lower limb, proximal) (p = 0.002); (5) had lower depressive temperament scores (p = 0.007); and (6) scored generally fewer character traits “at risk” (p = 0.043) with a lower total score (p = 0.018). NSSI tended to onset slightly earlier in life and in different shape when BPD was absent. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings support current approaches of early NSSI recognition and identification of risk profiles. Further prospective studies, which have to be sufficiently large and longitudinal, are needed and of great importance.