Screening for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in Mozambique: Validation of the Primary Care Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Screen for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual fifth edition (PC-PTSD-5).

OBJECTIVE: The confluence of conflict-, climate-, and public health-related emergencies in Mozambique increases the risk of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Few brief screening tools for PTSD have been validated in low- and middle-income countries. We aimed to validate the five-item Primary Care PTSD Screen for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.; DSM-5), the PC-PTSD-5 in Mozambique. METHOD: This study recruited 957 participants who completed the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview-Plus (MINI-Plus) and PC-PTSD-5, a convenience sample from primary and tertiary care settings in Maputo, Mozambique. Participants were administered a diagnostic interview for psychiatric disorders and the PC-PTSD-5 screening tool. We evaluated the criterion validity of the PC-PTSD-5 concerning the MINI-Plus diagnosis of PTSD, the internal construct validity and reliability using confirmatory factor analysis and Kuder-Richardson 20 (KR-20), discriminant validity of the PC-PTSD-5 in comparison to other common mental disorder and suicide risk screening tools, and measurement invariance of selected cutoffs by age, sex, and comorbidity. RESULTS: Internal consistency of the PC-PTSD-5 was high (KR-20 = 0.837), and confirmatory factor analysis suggested that a single PTSD factor fits the data well. PC-PTSD-5 items were moderately correlated with other psychiatric symptoms. Criterion validity analyses revealed that a cutoff score of 3 provided high specificity (0.833) and moderate sensitivity (0.673). This cutoff score performed optimally across age and gender; however, a cutoff score of 2 was preferred if the participant had no psychiatric comorbidities. CONCLUSION: Screening with the PC-PTSD-5 may facilitate case detection and linkages to appropriate treatment for individuals affected by potentially traumatic events in Mozambique. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Psychometric Evaluation of Screens for Common Mental Disorders, Severe Mental Disorders, Substance Use Disorders, and Suicide Risk in Mozambican Healthcare.

Globally, mental and substance use disorders are a leading cause of disease burden. In low- and middle-income countries, where there is an extreme shortage of trained mental health specialists, validated, brief screening tools for mental and substance use disorders are required for non-specialists to efficiently identify patients in need of mental health care. Mozambique, one of the poorest countries in the world, has fewer than two mental health specialists for every 100,000 people. In the present study, we evaluated a comprehensive set of seven measures for depression, anxiety, somatization, alcohol use disorder, substance use disorder, psychosis and mania, and suicide risk among N=911 Mozambican adults in general healthcare settings. All instruments demonstrated acceptable internal consistency (α > 0.75). Compared to diagnoses made by the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview, all measures showed good criterion validity (AUC > 0.75), except the Psychosis Screening Questionnaire, which showed low sensitivity (0.58) for psychotic disorder. No substantial differences were observed in internal consistency when stratifying by gender, age, education level, primary language, facility-type, and patient status; criterion validity showed some variability when stratified by sub-population, particularly for education, primary language, and whether the participant was seeking care that day. Exploratory factor analyses indicated that the measures best differentiate categories of diagnoses (common mental disorder, severe mental disorders, substance use disorders, and suicide risk) rather than individual diagnoses, suggesting the utility of a transdiagnostic approach. Our findings support the use of these measures in Mozambique to identify common mental disorders, substance use disorders, and suicide risk, but indicate further research is needed to develop an adequate screen for severe mental disorders. Given the limited mental health specialists in this and other LMIC settings, these brief measures can support non-specialist provision of mental health services and promote closure of the treatment gap.

Prevalence and associated factors of common mental disorders among internally displaced people by armed conflict in Cabo Delgado, Mozambique: a cross-sectional community-based study.

Background: Humanitarian emergencies are a major global health challenge with the potential to have a profound impact on people's mental and psychological health. Displacement is a traumatic event that disrupts families and affects physical and psychological health at all ages. A person may endure or witness a traumatic incident, such as being exposed to war, and, as a result, develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). There is a lack of information about post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety disorder in low and middle-income countries in humanitarian emergency contexts such as Mozambique. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of PTSD, depression, and anxiety, and associated factors among armed conflict survivors in Cabo Delgado, north region of Mozambique in 2023. Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted between January and April 2023 among 750 participants, who were selected by convenience. A face-to-face interview used the Primary Care Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Checklist (PC-PTSD-5) to evaluate PTSD, the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7) to evaluate anxiety and the Patient Health Questionnaire - Mozambique (PHQ-9 MZ) to evaluate depression. The association between PTSD and demographic and psychosocial characteristics was analyzed using bivariate and multivariable binary logistic regression. We used a 5% significance level. Results: The three mental disorders assessed were highly prevalent in our sample with 74.3% PTSD, 63.8% depression, and 40.0% anxiety. The chance of developing PTSD was higher in females (AOR = 2.30, 95% CI 1.50-3.51), in patients with depression symptoms (AOR = 8.27, 95% CI = 4.97-13.74) and anxiety symptoms (AOR = 1.45, 95% CI = 0.84-2.50). Conclusion: This study reported that the prevalence of PTSD, depression, and anxiety were high. Patients having depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and being female are more at risk of developing PTSD. There is a need to integrate screening for common mental disorders in the context of humanitarian emergencies and its adapted integration of psychosocial interventions.

Association between mental disorders and adherence to antiretroviral treatment in health facilities in two Mozambican provinces in 2018: a cross-sectional study.

INTRODUCTION: Lower adherence to antiretroviral treatment (ART) has been found among people with HIV (PWH) who have comorbid mental disorders like depression and alcohol use in Sub-Saharan African. However, there has been less exploration with regards to other mental disorders. METHODS: This study assessed the association of multiple mental disorders and adherence to ART based on the data from primary/tertiary health care facilities in Maputo and Nampula, Mozambique. We administered a sociodemographic questionnaire, Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) Plus 4.0.0 adapted for use in Mozambique to assess mental conditions, and a 3-item self-report to measure ART adherence. RESULTS: 395 HIV-positive (self-report) participants on ART, with an average age of 36.7 years (SD = 9.8), and 30.4% were male. The most common mental disorders were major depressive disorder (27.34%) followed by psychosis (22.03%), suicidal ideation/behavior (15.44%), and alcohol-use disorder (8.35%). Higher odds of missing at least one dose in the last 30 days (OR = 1.45, 95% CI: 1.01, 2.10) were found in participants with any mental disorder compared to those without a mental disorder. The highest levels of non-adherence were observed among those with drug use disorders and panic disorder. CONCLUSIONS: In Mozambique, PWH with any co-occurring mental conditions had a lower probability of ART adherence. Integrating comprehensive mental health assessment and treatment and ART adherence interventions tailored to PWH with co-occurring mental disorders is necessary to attain optimal ART adherence and reach the UNAIDS ART target.

Emotional contagion behavior in a group of young girls in a secondary school in Maputo, Mozambique.

BACKGROUND: Emotional Contagion Behavior (ECB), the synchronized expression of emotional symptoms among members of a group, has been observed globally. In Mozambique, there have been numerous reports of ECB in recent years. Since 2010 several girls from a secondary school in Maputo City, Mozambique exhibited ECB which involved repeated fainting spells, sometimes including verbal aggression and threats to colleagues and teachers. We conducted a study to analyze sociodemographic and clinical characteristics associated with ECB. METHODS: This cross-sectional study included 154 females aged from 16 to 24 years old. We considered emotional contagion behavior as repeated fainting spells, sometimes including verbal aggression and threats to others (colleagues and teachers). Participants responded to a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Beck Anxiety Scale, and the revised Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ-R). Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression models analyzed sociodemographic and clinical characteristics associated with EBC. RESULTS: Among study participants, 57 presented ECB and 97 did not. The likelihood of ECB was higher among those with previous history of ECB (OR = 8.28, 95% CI [2.51, 27.30]; p ⩽ .001) and extroverted personality profile (OR = 1.15, 95% CI [1.01, 1.30]; p = .038). Having a romantic relationship was related to lower likelihood of having ECB (OR = 0.04, 95% CI [0.01, 0.19]; p = .001). CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that ECB may repeat over time and be related to challenges pertaining to personality development, the presence of sexual life, and close relationships with peers faced by adolescent girls.

Does It Matter What Screener We Use? A Comparison of Ultra-brief PHQ-4 and E-mwTool-3 Screeners for Anxiety and Depression Among People With and Without HIV.

The burden of depression and anxiety disorders is high in sub-Saharan Africa, especially for people with HIV (PWH). The Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4) and Electronic Mental Wellness Tool-3 (E-mwTool-3) are ultra-brief screening tools for these disorders. We compared the performance of PHQ-4 and E-mwTool-3 for screening MINI-International Neuropsychiatric Interview diagnoses of depression and anxiety among a sample of individuals with and without HIV in two primary care clinics and one general hospital in Maputo City, Mozambique. Areas-under-the-curve (AUC) were calculated along with sensitivities and specificities at a range of cutoffs. For PWH, at a sum score cutoff of ≥ 1, sensitivities were strong: PHQ-4:Depression = 0.843; PHQ-4:Anxiety = 0.786; E-mwTool-3:Depression = 0.843; E-mwTool-3:Anxiety = 0.929. E-mwTool-3 performance was comparable to PHQ-4 among people with and without HIV.

Lay HIV counselors' knowledge and attitudes toward depression: A mixed-methods cross-sectional study at primary healthcare centers in Mozambique.

Introduction: Depression is the most common mental disorder among people living with HIV/AIDS and has a negative impact on HIV treatment outcomes. Training lay HIV counselors to identify and manage depression may contribute to improved patient access and adherence to treatment, and reduce stigma and discrimination among lay health workers toward both HIV and depression. The purpose of this study was to assess the current knowledge and attitudes of lay HIV counselors toward managing depression in primary care in Mozambique. Methods: We conducted a mixed-methods cross-sectional study to assess depression-related knowledge and attitudes among lay HIV counselors in 13 primary healthcare facilities in Mozambique. We used the quantitative Depression Attitude Questionnaire (DAQ) scale, followed by open-ended questions to further explore three key DAQ domains: the nature of depression, treatment preferences, and professional attitudes or reactions. Results: The sample included 107 participants (77.6% female, mean age: 32.3 years, sd = 7.4). Most (82.2%) had less than a high/technical school education. Findings suggested that some HIV counselors had knowledge of depression and described it as a cluster of psychological symptoms (e.g., deep sadness, anguish, apathy, isolation, and low self-esteem) sometimes leading to suicidal thoughts, or as a consequence of life stressors such as loss of a loved one, abuse, unemployment or physical illness, including being diagnosed with HIV infection. HIV counselors identified talking to trusted people about their problems, including family and/or counseling with a psychotherapist, as the best way for patients to deal with depression. While acknowledging challenges, counselors found working with patients with depression to be rewarding. Conclusion: Lay health counselors identified HIV and psychosocial issues as key risk factors for depression. They believed that the treatment approach should focus on social support and psychotherapy.

Cultural adaptation of psychological interventions for people with mental disorders delivered by lay health workers in Africa: scoping review and expert consultation.

BACKGROUND: Lay Health Workers (LHW) are important providers of community mental health services and help mitigate access and treatment gaps in Africa. However, there is a paucity of knowledge about the role and performance of these workers, as well as about the extent to which the interventions delivered are culturally adapted to the African context. AIMS: This scoping review aimed to explore the content and aspects concerning the cultural adaptation and sustainability of psychological interventions delivered by LHW to people with mental disorders in Africa. METHODS: We conducted a scoping review of the peer-reviewed literature published from January 2000 to December 2018 to identify psychological interventions delivered by LHW for people with mental disorders in Africa. We systematically searched PubMed, Google scholar and Hinari to select relevant publications. The articles were evaluated for risk of bias according to study design with the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's (NHLBI) Quality Assessment Tools. Expert consultation was performed according to Arksey & O'Malley framework and cultural adaptation analysis was performed according to Bernal framework. RESULTS: Out of 14,549 retrieved records, we identified ten peer-reviewed articles conducted in Zimbabwe, Uganda, South Africa and Zambia describing four distinct interventions. Six were randomized controlled trials; none addressed implementation outcomes. Group-based interpersonal therapy (n = 5), trauma-focused cognitive behaviour therapy (n = 1), problem solving therapy (n = 3) and narrative exposure therapy (n = 1) emerged as psychological interventions delivered by LHW for people with depression, anxiety, trauma and suicidal behavior. Psychological interventions delivered by LHW in Africa were all culturally adapted to meet the competence of LHW. All the interventions were associated with symptom improvement, but the quality of this evidence varied widely with study design. CONCLUSION: Task-shifting psychological interventions delivered by LHW after appropriate cultural adaptation show promise for addressing unmet mental health care needs in Africa. More effectiveness and implementation evidence is needed, especially with regard to psychological interventions delivered by LHW for adolescence, older people and those with severe mental disorders and suicidal behaviors.

Brief Screening Tool for Stepped-Care Management of Mental and Substance Use Disorders.

OBJECTIVE: Stepped mental health care requires a rapid method for nonspecialists to detect illness. This study aimed to develop and validate a brief instrument, the Mental Wellness Tool (mwTool), for identification and classification. METHODS: Cross-sectional development and validation samples included adults at six health facilities in Mozambique. Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview diagnoses were the criterion standard. Candidate items were from nine mental disorder and functioning assessments. Regression modeling and expert consultation determined best items for identifying any mental disorder and classifying positives into disorder categories (severe mental disorder, common mental disorder, substance use disorder, and suicide risk). For validation, sensitivity and specificity were calculated for any mental disorder (index and proxy respondents) and disorder categories (index). RESULTS: From the development sample (911 participants, mean±SD age=32.0±11 years, 63% female), 13 items were selected-three with 0.83 sensitivity (95% confidence interval [CI]=0.79-0.86) for any mental disorder and 10 additional items classifying participants with a specificity that ranged from 0.72 (severe mental disorder) to 0.90 (suicide risk). For validation (453 participants, age 31±11 years, 65% female), sensitivity for any mental disorder was 0.94 (95% CI=0.89-0.97) with index responses and 0.73 (95% CI=0.58-0.85) with family proxy responses. Specificity for categories ranged from 0.47 (severe mental disorder) to 0.93 (suicide risk). Removing one item increased severe mental disorder specificity to 0.63 (95% CI=0.58-0.68). CONCLUSIONS: The mwTool performed well for identification of any mental disorder with index and proxy responses to three items and for classification into treatment categories with index responses to nine additional items.

Integrating human-centred design into the development of an intervention to improve the mental wellbeing of young women in the perinatal period: the Catalyst project.

BACKGROUND: Mental wellbeing during pregnancy and the year after birth is critical to a range of maternal and infant outcomes. Many mental health interventions fail to incorporate stakeholder perspectives. The Catalyst Project aimed to work with key stakeholders in Mozambique to develop interventions and delivery strategies which were in-line with existing evidence and the needs, goals, and priorities of those both directly and indirectly involved in its success. METHODS: A qualitative, human-centred design approach was utilised. Focus-group discussions, individual interviews, and observations with young women (aged 16-24 years), their families, community leaders, service providers and government were used to better understand the needs, priorities and challenges to mental wellbeing of young women. These findings were triangulated with the literature to determine priority challenges to be addressed by an intervention. Stakeholder workshops were held to identify potential solutions and co-develop an intervention and delivery strategy. RESULTS: The 65 participants comprised 23 young pregnant women or new mothers, 12 family members, 19 service providers and 11 staff from the Ministry of Health. Participants highlighted significant uncertainty related to living situations, financial status, education, social support, and limited knowledge of what to expect of the impact of pregnancy and parenting. Family and community support were identified as an important need among this group. The Mama Felíz (Happy Mama) programme was developed with stakeholders as a course to strengthen pregnancy, childbirth and child development knowledge, and build positive relationships, problem-solving and parenting skills. In addition, family sessions address wider cultural and gender issues which impact adolescent maternal wellbeing. CONCLUSIONS: We have developed an intervention to reduce the risk of poor maternal mental health and gives young mothers hope and skills to make a better life for them and their children by packaging information about the risk and protective factors for maternal mental disorders in a way that appeals to them, their families and service providers. By using human-centred design to understand the needs and priorities of young mothers and the health and community systems in which they live, the resulting intervention and delivery strategy is one that stakeholders view as appropriate and acceptable.

Technology and implementation science to forge the future of evidence-based psychotherapies: the PRIDE scale-up study.

OBJECTIVE: To report the interim results from the training of providers inevidence-based psychotherapies (EBPs) and use of mobile applications. DESIGN AND SETTING: The Partnerships in Research to Implement and Disseminate Sustainable and Scalable Evidence (PRIDE) study is a cluster-randomised hybrid effectiveness-implementation trial comparing three delivery pathways for integrating comprehensive mental healthcare into primary care in Mozambique. Innovations include the use of EBPs and scaling-up of task-shifted mental health services using mobile applications. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: We examined EBP training attendance, certification, knowledge and intentions to deliver each component. We collected qualitative data through rapid ethnography and focus groups. We tracked the use of the mobile applications to investigate early reach of a valid screening tool (Electronic Mental Wellness Tool) and the roll out of the EBPs PARTICIPANTS: Psychiatric technicians and primary care providers trained in the EBPs. RESULTS: PRIDE has trained 110 EBP providers, supervisors and trainers and will train 279 community health workers in upcoming months. The trainings improved knowledge about the EBPs and trainees indicated strong intentions to deliver the EBP core components. Trained providers began using the mobile applications and appear to identify cases and provide appropriate treatment. CONCLUSIONS: The future of EBPs requires implementation within existing systems of care with fidelity to their core evidence-based components. To sustainably address the vast mental health treatment gap globally, EBP implementation demands: expanding the mental health workforce by training existing human resources; sequential use of EBPs to comprehensively treat mental disorders and their comorbid presentations and leveraging digital screening and treatment applications.

Reducing the Number of People with Dementia Through Primary Prevention in Mozambique, Brazil, and Portugal: An Analysis of Population-Based Data.

BACKGROUND: Most people with dementia live in low- and middle-income countries and little is known about the potential for reducing these numbers by reducing key risk factors. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the potential for dementia incidence reduction in Brazil, Mozambique, and Portugal (a culturally related, high-income country). METHODS: We replicated previously published methods and based on the relative risks from previous studies, we estimated the population-attributable risk (PAR) of dementia in Mozambique, Brazil, and Portugal for seven modifiable risk factors associated with dementia (low educational attainment, physical inactivity, midlife hypertension, midlife obesity, depression, smoking, and diabetes mellitus). The combined PAR was calculated and adjusted for associations between risk factors. The potential for risk factor reduction was assessed by examining the effect of relative reductions of 10% and 20% per decade for each of the risk factors on projections for dementia cases for each decade until 2050. RESULTS: After adjusting for non-independence of risk factors, 24.4%, 32.3%, and 40.1% of dementia cases could be related to seven potentially modifiable risk factors in Mozambique, Brazil, and Portugal, respectively. Reducing the prevalence of each risk factor by 20% per decade could, by 2050, potentially reduce the prevalence of dementia in Mozambique, Brazil, and Portugal by 12.9%, 16.2%, and 19.5%, respectively. CONCLUSION: There is a substantial difference between the countries in the percentage of dementia cases that could be attributable to the seven potentially modifiable risk factors. The proportion of cases that could be prevented by 2050 if measures were taken to address these main risk factors was higher in Portugal than in Brazil and Mozambique. Each country or region should consider their unique risk factor profile when developing dementia risk reduction programs.

Family reintegration of homeless in Maputo and Matola: a descriptive study.

BACKGROUND: Homelessness is a global and local social problem with underestimated prevalence. It has been shown to increase the risk of mental illness, raising concerns from mental health providers about the need for effective interventions targeting this population. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this paper is to describe the mental health status of the homeless people in two urban setting in a low-income country, through using standardised clinical and socio-demographic assessments as well assessing potential predictors of family integration versus non-family integration among a group of homeless individuals receiving psychiatric and psychosocial treatment. METHODS: A descriptive study was performed in Maputo and Matola cities between 2008 and 2010. Homeless people with apparent mental illness were mapped and recruited. The participants were referred from community to hospital, using a multidisciplinary treatment model, according to their clinical condition and later entered a family reintegration process. RESULTS: Seventy-one homeless people were recruited (93.0% male; 80.3% unemployed). The most common diagnosis was schizophrenia and other psychosis (46; 64.8%), followed by mental and behaviour disorder related to substance misuse (21; 29.6%), and intellectual disability (4; 5.6%). Family reintegration was achieved for 53.5% (38 patients). Patients with intellectual disability were less reintegrated and those with disorders related to substance use had better reinsertion in their families (Chi square (2)  = 6.1; p = 0.047). CONCLUSIONS: Family reintegration was achieved in more than half of participants after hospitalization. Integration was higher in cases of substance misuse, with those with associated intellectual disability being more difficult to reintegrate. Trial registration Trial Registration Number: NCT02936141, date of registration: 14/10/2016, retrospectively registered.

60,000 years of interactions between Central and Eastern Africa documented by major African mitochondrial haplogroup L2.

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplogroup L2 originated in Western Africa but is nowadays spread across the entire continent. L2 movements were previously postulated to be related to the Bantu expansion, but L2 expansions eastwards probably occurred much earlier. By reconstructing the phylogeny of L2 (44 new complete sequences) we provide insights on the complex net of within-African migrations in the last 60 thousand years (ka). Results show that lineages in Southern Africa cluster with Western/Central African lineages at a recent time scale, whereas, eastern lineages seem to be substantially more ancient. Three moments of expansion from a Central African source are associated to L2: (1) one migration at 70-50 ka into Eastern or Southern Africa, (2) postglacial movements (15-10 ka) into Eastern Africa; and (3) the southward Bantu Expansion in the last 5 ka. The complementary population and L0a phylogeography analyses indicate no strong evidence of mtDNA gene flow between eastern and southern populations during the later movement, suggesting low admixture between Eastern African populations and the Bantu migrants. This implies that, at least in the early stages, the Bantu expansion was mainly a demic diffusion with little incorporation of local populations.