Symptoms and predictors of depression among university students in the Kilimanjaro region of Tanzania: a cross-sectional study.
J Ment Health
; 30(2): 255-262, 2021 Apr.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-32697163
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Depression is the second leading cause of death among young people worldwide, and severity and suicidality are useful predictors of an adverse outcome.AIM:
This study aimed at examining factors associated with depression among university students in Tanzania.METHODS:
A cross-sectional study was conducted between March 2018 and July 2019 of undergraduate students across four universities. They completed a self-reported questionnaire collecting socio-demographic, together with a Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) to screen for depression. A multivariate logistic regression model was used to determine independent predictors of depression.RESULTS:
A total of 1047 students completed the study. Their mean (±SD) age was 24.2 (±7) years. 219 students (21.3%) screened positive for probable depression (survey-1 34% vs survey-2 13%). A total of 228 (21.9%) students reported having thoughts of serious self-harm. Factors independently influencing depression included year of study, substance abuse, unhappy interpersonal relationships and chronic mental or physical illness. The presence of an eating disorder was a predictor of depression and was recorded in 7.4% of all students.CONCLUSION:
Significant probable depression is present in one fifth of undergraduate students in this study. These results demonstrate a worrying degree of self- reported features of depression among North Tanzanian university students.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
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Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Estudantes
/
Depressão
Tipo de estudo:
Diagnostic_studies
/
Observational_studies
/
Prevalence_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
/
Qualitative_research
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limite:
Adolescent
/
Adult
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
País como assunto:
Africa
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2021
Tipo de documento:
Article