An overview of Indian research in depression

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Abstract

Depression as a disorder has always been a focus of attention of researchers in India. Over the last 50-60 years, large number of studies has been published from India addressing various aspects of this commonly prevalent disorder. The various aspects studied included epidemiology, demographic and psychosocial risk factor, neurobiology, symptomatology, comorbidity, assessment and diagnosis, impact of depression, treatment related issues and prevention of depression in addition to the efficacy and tolerability of various antidepressants. Here, we review data on various aspects of depression, originating from India.

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Most cited references 258

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Depressive attributional style.

Martin Seligman, Lyn Y. Abramson, Amy Semmel … (1979)

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Gender, poverty, and postnatal depression: a study of mothers in Goa, India.

Vikram Patel, Nandita deSouza, Ana S. M. C. Rodrigues (2001)

This study described the natural history of depression in mothers who recently gave birth in a low-income country and to investigate the effect of risk factors, particularly related to infant gender bias, on the occurrence and outcome of depression. The authors studied a group of pregnant mothers recruited during their third trimester of pregnancy from a district hospital in Goa, India. The mothers were interviewed at recruitment, 6-8 weeks, and 6 months after childbirth. Interview data included presence of antenatal and postnatal depression, obstetric history, economic and demographic characteristics, and gender-based variables (preference for male infant, presence of marital violence). Depressive disorder was detected in 59 (23%) of the mothers at 6-8 weeks after childbirth; 78% of these patients had had clinically substantial psychological morbidity during the antenatal period. More than one-half of the patients remained ill at 6 months after delivery. Economic deprivation and poor marital relationships were important risk factors for the occurrence and chronicity of depression. The gender of the infant was a determinant of postnatal depression; it modified the effect of other risk factors, such as marital violence and hunger. Depressed mothers were more disabled and were more likely to use health services than nondepressed mothers. Maternal and infant health policies, a priority in low-income countries, must integrate maternal depression as a disorder of public health significance. Interventions should target mothers in the antenatal period and incorporate a strong gender-based component.

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Prevalence of Depression in a Large Urban South Indian Population — The Chennai Urban Rural Epidemiology Study (Cures – 70)

Subramani Poongothai, Rajendra Pradeepa, Anbhazhagan Ganesan … (2009)

Background In India there are very few population based data on prevalence of depression. The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence of depression in an urban south Indian population. Methods and Findings Subjects were recruited from the Chennai Urban Rural Epidemiology Study (CURES), involving 26,001 subjects randomly recruited from 46 of the 155 corporation wards of Chennai (formerly Madras) city in South India. 25,455 subjects participated in this study (response rate 97.9%). Depression was assessed using a self-reported and previously validated instrument, the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ) – 12. Age adjustment was made according to the 2001 census of India. The overall prevalence of depression was 15.1% (age-adjusted, 15.9%) and was higher in females (females 16.3% vs. males 13.9%, p<0.0001). The odds ratio (OR) for depression in female subjects was 1.20 [Confidence Intervals (CI): 1.12–1.28, p<0.001] compared to male subjects. Depressed mood was the most common symptom (30.8%), followed by tiredness (30.0%) while more severe symptoms such as suicidal thoughts (12.4%) and speech and motor retardation (12.4%) were less common. There was an increasing trend in the prevalence of depression with age among both female (p<0.001) and male subjects (p<0.001). The prevalence of depression was higher in the low income group (19.3%) compared to the higher income group (5.9%, p<0.001). Prevalence of depression was also higher among divorced (26.5%) and widowed (20%) compared to currently married subjects (15.4%, p<0.001). Conclusions This is the largest population-based study from India to report on prevalence of depression and shows that among urban south Indians, the prevalence of depression was 15.1%. Age, female gender and lower socio-economic status are some of the factors associated with depression in this population.

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Author and article information

Journal

Journal ID (nlm-ta): Indian J Psychiatry

Journal ID (publisher-id): IJPsy

Title: Indian Journal of Psychiatry

Publisher: Medknow Publications (India )

ISSN (Print): 0019-5545

ISSN (Electronic): 1998-3794

Publication date (Print): January 2010

Volume: 52

Issue: Suppl1

Pages: S178-S188

Affiliations

Department of Psychiatry, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India

Author notes

Address for correspondence: Dr. Sandeep Grover, Department of Psychiatry, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh - 160 012, India drsandeepg2002@ 123456yahoo.com

Article

Publisher ID: IJPsy-52-178

DOI: 10.4103/0019-5545.69231

PMC ID: 3146226

PubMed ID: 21836676

SO-VID: 036902a4-384e-45ae-8607-af5f25e6f117

License:

This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

An overview of Indian research in depression

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Abstract

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Measurement of Glucocorticoid Receptor Signaling in Major Depression

Most cited references 258

Depressive attributional style.

Gender, poverty, and postnatal depression: a study of mothers in Goa, India.

Prevalence of Depression in a Large Urban South Indian Population — The Chennai Urban Rural Epidemiology Study (Cures – 70)

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