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BMC Psychiatry
Published in: BMC Psychiatry 1/2019

Open Access 01-12-2019 | Mood Disorders | Research article

Prevalence of geriatric depression in the Kavre district, Nepal: Findings from a cross sectional community survey

Authors: Kedar Manandhar, Ajay Risal, Oshin Shrestha, Nirmala Manandhar, Dipak Kunwar, Rajendra Koju, Are Holen

Published in: BMC Psychiatry | Issue 1/2019

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Abstract

Background

The increasing elderly population worldwide is likely to increase mental health problems such as geriatric depression, which has mostly been studied in high-income countries. Similar studies are scarce in low-and-middle-income-countries like Nepal.

Methods

A cross-sectional, population-based, door-to-door survey was conducted in randomly selected rural and urban population clusters of the Kavre district, Nepal. Trained nurses (field interviewers) administered structured questionnaires that included a validated Nepali version of the Geriatric Depression Scale short form (GDS-15) for identifying geriatric depression among the elderly (≥60 years) participants (N = 460). Those scoring ≥6 on GDS-15 were considered depressed. Logistic regression analysis explored the associations of geriatric depression with regard to socio-demographic information, life style, family support and physical well-being.

Results

Of the total 460 selected elderly participants, 439 (95.4%) took part in the study. More than half of them were females (54.2%). The mean age was 70.9 (± 8.6) years. Approximately half (50.6%) were rural inhabitants, the majority (86.1%) were illiterate, and about three-fifths (60.1%) were living with their spouses. The gender-and-age adjusted prevalence of geriatric depression was 53.1%. Geriatric depression was significantly associated with rural habitation (AOR 1.6), illiteracy (AOR 2.1), limited time provided by families (AOR 1.8), and exposure to verbal and/or physical abuse (AOR 2.6).

Conclusion

Geriatric depression is highly prevalent in Kavre, Nepal. The findings call for urgent prioritization of delivery of elderly mental health care services in the country.
Appendix
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Metadata
Title
Prevalence of geriatric depression in the Kavre district, Nepal: Findings from a cross sectional community survey
Authors
Kedar Manandhar
Ajay Risal
Oshin Shrestha
Nirmala Manandhar
Dipak Kunwar
Rajendra Koju
Are Holen
Publication date
01-12-2019
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
BMC Psychiatry / Issue 1/2019
Electronic ISSN: 1471-244X
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-019-2258-5

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