A retrospective chart review of 4,072 adolescents seen in the ER at a children's hospital (CH) from July 1984 to June 1985 was undertaken. Twenty-seven adolescents who had deliberately injured themselves were identified. The average age was 14 years 7 months (range 11-19 years). Fifty-two percent of the patients were white and 78 percent were female. Ingestion was the most common method (78 percent), followed by attempted hanging (11 percent) and wrist laceration (7 percent). After evaluation by a pediatrician in the ER, 30 percent of the patients were treated and released, 11 percent were transferred directly to a psychiatric hospital, 59 percent were admitted to CH, with an average hospital stay of 1.88 days. Once hospitalized, consultations from psychiatry (81 percent), social service (50 percent), psychology (19 percent), and neurology (6 percent) were obtained. At the time of discharge from either the ER or CH, the patients had a variety of plans for ongoing care, with 52 percent being referred to outpatient counseling, 37 percent being transferred to a psychiatric hospital, and 11 percent having no documented plan for ongoing care. These results demonstrate that the evaluation of suicidal adolescents cared for in a pediatric facility may be episodic and suggest the need for a comprehensive program to approach the problem. 16 references. (Publisher abstract)