Weekend catch-up sleep is independently associated with suicide attempts and self-injury in Korean adolescents

The current study aims to determine the associations of insufficient sleep with suicide attempts and self-injury in a large, school-based Korean adolescent sample.A sample of 4553 middle- and high-school students (grades 7–10) was recruited in this study. Finally, 4145 students completed self-report questionnaires including items on sleep duration (weekday/weekend), self-injury, suicide attempts during the past year, the Suicidal Ideation Questionnaire (SIQ), and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI).A multiple linear regression model showed that higher SIQ scores were associated with longer weekend catch-up sleep duration (p = 0.009), higher BDI score (p < 0.001), and longer time spent in a private educational institute (p = 0.025). The multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that longer weekend catch-up sleep duration (p = 0.011), higher BDI score (p < 0.001), longer time spent in a private educational institute (p = 0.046), and poorer academic record (p = 0.029) were associated with suicide attempt and self-injury during the past year.The present results suggest that weekend catch-up sleep duration – which is an indicator of insufficient weekday sleep – might be associated with suicide attempts and self-injury in Korean adolescents.