A Preliminary Study of Depression among Students

Background: Depression is one of the most commonly encountered emotional distresses in both the general public and in various types of clinical populations. Now a day’s emotional disorders among students are quite common. They have adverse effect on their functioning and adjustment which has, in turn, repercussion in denting their vital period for learning and social development. This study was conducted to evaluate depression among students. Materials & Methods: This study was conducted in department of Psychiatry in year 2015. It included 500 undergraduate students of both gender.  The nine-item depression Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) was designed for use in primary care and non-psychiatric settings. It contained items derived from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition (DSM IV). The classification system pertains to: (1) anhedonia, (2) depressed mood, (3) trouble sleeping, (4) feeling tired, (5) change in appetite, (6) guilt or worthlessness, (7) trouble concentrating, (8) feeling slowed down or restless, and (9) suicidal thoughts. A total score more than 11 was used as the cut point to diagnose depression in this study. Results: Out of 500 students, 220 were males and 280 were females. The difference was non – significant (P > 0.05). The mean age of males was 22.04±1.5 years and in females was 20.17±1.3 years. The difference was non – significant (P > 0.05). In arts group, males were 51 and females were 49, from science group, males were 55 and females were 45, from commerce group, males were 30 and females were 70, from medicine/ nursing group, males were 40 and females were 60, from engineering group, males were 44 and females were 56. Except commerce group (P – 0.05), the difference was non- significant (P > 0.05). 154 males and 196 females were normal (score < 10), 33 males and 34 females had mild depression (score 11-15), 22 males and 36 females had moderate depression (score 16-19) and 11 males and 14 females had severe depression with score > 20. The difference was significant (P < 0.05). In arts group, 70% students were normal, 16% had mild depression, 10% had moderate and 4% had severe depression. In science group, 60% students were normal, 22% had mild depression, 8% had moderate and 10% had severe depression. In commerce group, 61% students were normal, 18% had mild depression, 14% had moderate and 7% had severe depression. In medicine/ Nursing group, 40% students were normal, 16% had mild depression, 20% had moderate and 24% had severe depression. In engineering group, 35% students were normal, 26% had mild depression, 18% had moderate and 21% had severe depression. The difference was significant (P < 0.05). Conclusion: Depression is common among males and females students. There is higher prevalence among science, medicine and nursing students. There is need to avoid the depression by decreasing work load and education burden on students.