Depression among individuals with disabilities: a community-based cross-sectional study in Nepal

Objective To assess the prevalence of depression and its associated factors among individuals with disabilities.Design Cross-sectional study.Setting Community-based study conducted in Ilam municipality, Nepal, from October to November 2019.Participants The study was conducted among 164 people with p...

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Main Authors: Apekshya Ghimire, Durga Kumari Khadka Mishra
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMJ Publishing Group 2025-02-01
Series:BMJ Open
Online Access:https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/15/2/e082955.full
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author Apekshya Ghimire
Durga Kumari Khadka Mishra
author_facet Apekshya Ghimire
Durga Kumari Khadka Mishra
author_sort Apekshya Ghimire
collection DOAJ
description Objective To assess the prevalence of depression and its associated factors among individuals with disabilities.Design Cross-sectional study.Setting Community-based study conducted in Ilam municipality, Nepal, from October to November 2019.Participants The study was conducted among 164 people with physical, hearing and vision-related disabilities. Participants were selected through a simple random sampling method using the sampling frame obtained from Ilam municipality.Main outcome measure Depression and its associated factors among people with disabilities. Depression was assessed via a validated Nepali version of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Data collection was based on a pretested structured questionnaire.Results The prevalence of depression was 39% among people with disabilities, and 29.9% of the respondents were in borderline depression. In an unadjusted analysis, depression was significantly (p<0.05) associated with comorbidities, absence of medical intervention, severe disabilities and disabilities acquired at birth. After adjusting for individual-level factors (age, sex, education, employment and physical activities), the level of disability and treatment accessibility were significantly associated with depression. After adjusting for family and community-level factors (economic status, experience of violence and social participation), depression remained significantly associated (p<0.05) with having comorbidities, absence of medical intervention and presence of very severe disabilities. When adjusting for both individual-level and community-level factors, the level of disability continued to show a significant association with depression (OR 6.36 (moderate vs mild), 2.11 (severe vs mild) and 13.3 (very severe vs mild), overall p-value of 0.045). Across all three adjusted models, the level of disability was significantly associated with depression (p<0.05).Conclusion Depression is one of the major global public health concerns, with people with disabilities being particularly vulnerable. Ensuring the health and well-being of people with disabilities requires focused attention and strategic planning, emphasising disease prevention, health promotion and improved access to care.
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spelling doaj-art-97983b8e13fb4feea72e02b1ee6c5bf12025-08-20T02:45:14ZengBMJ Publishing GroupBMJ Open2044-60552025-02-0115210.1136/bmjopen-2023-082955Depression among individuals with disabilities: a community-based cross-sectional study in NepalApekshya Ghimire0Durga Kumari Khadka Mishra1Department of Public Health, Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences, Kathmandu, NepalDepartment of Public Health, Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences, Kathmandu, NepalObjective To assess the prevalence of depression and its associated factors among individuals with disabilities.Design Cross-sectional study.Setting Community-based study conducted in Ilam municipality, Nepal, from October to November 2019.Participants The study was conducted among 164 people with physical, hearing and vision-related disabilities. Participants were selected through a simple random sampling method using the sampling frame obtained from Ilam municipality.Main outcome measure Depression and its associated factors among people with disabilities. Depression was assessed via a validated Nepali version of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Data collection was based on a pretested structured questionnaire.Results The prevalence of depression was 39% among people with disabilities, and 29.9% of the respondents were in borderline depression. In an unadjusted analysis, depression was significantly (p<0.05) associated with comorbidities, absence of medical intervention, severe disabilities and disabilities acquired at birth. After adjusting for individual-level factors (age, sex, education, employment and physical activities), the level of disability and treatment accessibility were significantly associated with depression. After adjusting for family and community-level factors (economic status, experience of violence and social participation), depression remained significantly associated (p<0.05) with having comorbidities, absence of medical intervention and presence of very severe disabilities. When adjusting for both individual-level and community-level factors, the level of disability continued to show a significant association with depression (OR 6.36 (moderate vs mild), 2.11 (severe vs mild) and 13.3 (very severe vs mild), overall p-value of 0.045). Across all three adjusted models, the level of disability was significantly associated with depression (p<0.05).Conclusion Depression is one of the major global public health concerns, with people with disabilities being particularly vulnerable. Ensuring the health and well-being of people with disabilities requires focused attention and strategic planning, emphasising disease prevention, health promotion and improved access to care.https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/15/2/e082955.full
spellingShingle Apekshya Ghimire
Durga Kumari Khadka Mishra
Depression among individuals with disabilities: a community-based cross-sectional study in Nepal
BMJ Open
title Depression among individuals with disabilities: a community-based cross-sectional study in Nepal
title_full Depression among individuals with disabilities: a community-based cross-sectional study in Nepal
title_fullStr Depression among individuals with disabilities: a community-based cross-sectional study in Nepal
title_full_unstemmed Depression among individuals with disabilities: a community-based cross-sectional study in Nepal
title_short Depression among individuals with disabilities: a community-based cross-sectional study in Nepal
title_sort depression among individuals with disabilities a community based cross sectional study in nepal
url https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/15/2/e082955.full
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