Faculty

Katalin Szanto, MD

Professor of Psychiatry

Contact Details

3811 O'Hara St.
Pittsburgh
 
PA
 
15213
Email
Website
Pittsburgh Longitudinal Studies of Late-life Suicide
Szanto Publications
Assistant
Morgan Buerke
buerkem@upmc.edu

Education & Training

MD
Semmelweis Medical School
Psychiatry, Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic of UPMC
Psychiatry, National Institute of Neurology and Psychiatry. Budapest
Suicide, University of Pittsburgh Center for the Study of Suicidal Behavior
Behavioral Economics, Statistical Methods for Neuroscience and Psychology, Risk Perception and Communication, Carnegie Mellon University
Epidemiology and Statistics, University of Pittsburgh Clinical Research Training Program
Interpersonal Psychotherapy, Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic of UPMC
Family Therapy, London Family Therapy Institute

Specialty Certifications

Board Certification
American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (Geriatric Psychiatry, Psychiatry)

Professional Affiliations

Secretary, International Academy of Suicide Research
Member, American Association of Psychiatrists
Council Level Reviewer, American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

Selected Honors & Awards

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention Award, International Association for Suicide Prevention
Lilly Research Award, American Psychiatric Association

Research Interests

Cognition & decision-making; suicide; Suicide in late life
Selected Research Publications & Products
  1. Szanto K, Galfalvy H, Kenneally L, Almasi R Dombrovski AY. (2020). Predictors of serious suicidal behavior in late-life depression. European Neuropsychopharmacology
  2. Szanto K, Galfalvy H, Vanyukov PM, Keilp JG & Dombrovski AY. (2018). Pathways to late-life suicidal behavior: Cluster analysis and predictive validation of suicidal behavior in a sample of older adults with major depression. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 79(2), 17m11611.
  3. Szanto K, de Bruin WB, Parker AM, Hallquist MN, Vanyukov PM & Dombrovski AY. (2015) Decision-making competence and attempted suicide. The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. Dec ,76(12): 1-478. PMCID: PMC4697276.
  4. Szanto K, Clark L, Hallquist M, Vanyukov PM, Crockett M, Dombrovski AY. (2014). The cost of social punishment and high-lethality suicide attempts in the second half of life. Psychology and Aging. Mar; 21(1): 84-94. PMCID: PMC4051315
  5. Dombrovski AY, Clark L, Siegle GJ, Butters MA, Ichikawa N, Sahakian B, Szanto K. (2010). Reward/punishment reversal learning in older suicide attempters. American Journal of Psychiatry, 167:699-707, PMCID: PMC3020386

Clinical Interests

Suicide in late life
Selected Clinical Publications & Products
  1. Zhang K, Szanto K, Clark L, Dombrovski AY. (2019). Behavioral empathy failures and suicidal behavior. Behaviour Research and Therapy. 120, 103329.
  2. Szanto K, Mulsant BH, Houck PR, Dew MA, Dombrovski A, Pollock BG & Reynolds CF III. (2007). Emergence, persistence, and resolution of suicidal ideation during treatment of depression in old age. Journal of Affective Disorders, 98(1-2):153-161,
  3. Szanto K, Kalmar S, Hendin H, Rihmer, Z, Mann JJ. (2007). A suicide prevention program in a very high suicide rate region. Archives of General Psychiatry, 64(6): 914-920. PMID: 17679636
  4. Szanto K, Shear K, Houck PR, Reynolds CF, Frank E, Caroff K & Silowash R. (2006). Indirect self- destructive behavior and overt suicidality in patients with complicated grief. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 67(2):233-239.
  5. Szanto K, Mulsant BH, Houck P, Dew MA, Reynolds CF III. (2003). Occurrence and course of suicidality during acute treatment of late-life depression. Archives of General Psychiatry, 60:610-617. PMID: 12796224

Education Interests

Research mentorship
Selected Education Publications & Products
  1. Szucs A, Szanto K, Aubry J M & Dombrovski AY. (2018). Personality and suicidal behavior in old age: A systematic literature review. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 9, 128.
  2. Szanto K. (2017). Cognitive deficits: underappreciated contributors to suicide. American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 25(6): 630-632.
  3. Szanto K, Lenze E, Waern M, Duberstein P, Bruce ML, Epstein-Lubow G & Conwell Y. (2013). Research to reduce the suicide rate among older adults: Methodology roadblocks and promising paradigms. Psychatric Services, PMC3742079
  4. Hendin H, Maltsberger T & Szanto K. (2008). The psychosocial context of the trauma in treating PTSD patients. American Journal of Psychiatry, 165(1):28-32, PMID: 18178753
  5. Hendin H, Maltsberger JT, Haas Pollinger A, Rabinowitcz H & Szanto K. (2006). Problems in psychotherapy of suicidal patients. American Journal of Psychiatry, 163(1):67-72. PMID: 16390891

International Psychogeriatrics: Childhood Trauma is Associated with Early-Onset but not Late-Onset Suicidal Behavior in Late-Life Depression

Dr. Katalin Szanto

Traumatic early-life experiences—emotional, physical, or sexual abuse and/or neglect in childhood—can have an impact on cognitive, emotional, and neurodevelopmental processes years after the events occur, potentially leading to depression and suicidal behavior into adolescence and young adulthood. However, it is unclear whether this same relationship extends into late life. As older adults, especially those 85 and...

Addressing Clinical Challenges in Late Life: The 2021 Behavioral Health & Aging Conference

Addressing Clinical Challenges in Late Life: The 2021 Behavioral Health & Aging Conference

The October 2021 Behavioral Health and Aging Conference addressed challenges that clinicians face when working with older patients, including assessing and managing suicide risk, assessing ability to operate a motor vehicle, and considering the therapeutic options for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. The conference was attended by a diverse group of physicians, nurses, front-line staff, case managers, service...

Now in Neuropsychopharmacology: How Impulsivity and Disrupted Decision-Making Relate to Suicidal Behavior

Dombrovski & Colleagues Neuropsychopharmacology 2020

Research has demonstrated that impaired decision-making is a key factor in the onset of suicidal behavior and can manifest as difficulty choosing between two similarly valued options or as impulsivity in decision-making. To better understand the potential relationship between decision-making and suicidal behavior, scientists have examined the neural underpinnings of each and found disrupted ventromedial prefrontal...

Impairment of Learning from Experience and Making Value-Based Choice in Suicidal Behavior

Dombrovski et al. Biological Psychiatry 2019

Suicidal behavior is often misunderstood as a strategic decision that follows a thorough evaluation of circumstances, alternative solutions and possible deterrents. Yet, clinicians know that those at-risk for suicide may not reliably assess the proportion of triggering circumstances relative to the impact of the suicidal act. Suicide can, at times, be especially difficult to understand because although it may...