Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Cross-Cultural Equivalence Of The Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10) Across Four African Countries In A Multi-National Study Of Adults, Amantia Ametaj, Christy Denckla, Anne Stevenson, Rocky Stroud, Jasmine Hall, Linnet Ongeri, Barkot Milkias, Jacob Hoffman, Lukoye Atwoli, Stella Gichuru

Internal Medicine, East Africa

The Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10) has been widely used to screen psychological distress across many countries. However, its performance has not been extensively studied in Africa. The present study sought to evaluate and compare measurement properties of the K10 across four African countries: Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, and South Africa. Our hypothesis is that the measure will show equivalence across all. Data are drawn from a neuropsychiatric genetic study among adult participants (N = 9179) from general medical settings in Ethiopia (n = 1928), Kenya (n = 2556), Uganda (n = 2104), and South Africa (n = 2591). A unidimensional …

Factors Associated With Depressive Symptoms In Patients With Benign Prostatic Enlargement, Husni Abdalla, Jasmit Shah, Tabitha A.N. Nyanja, Jacob Shabani

Family Medicine, East Africa

Background: Depression is a common condition that may lead to suicide at its worst. It is considered one of the primary causes of morbidity globally. Among the urological causes of depression is benign prostatic enlargement (BPE).

Aim: To determine the prevalence and factors associated with depressive symptoms among BPE patients.

Setting: This study was conducted in the Urology and Family Medicine Clinic at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi and Urology clinic at the Aga Khan Hospital Mombasa.

Methods: The study was a cross-sectional design recruiting 308 males above the age of 40. Patient Health Questionnaire-9 …

Frequency Of Depression And Anxiety Among Patients With Chronic Spontaneous Urticaria Visiting A Tertiary Care Hospital In Karachi, Pakistan, Muhammad Rizwan Rafique, Sadia Masood, Sana Tanzil, Saadia Tabassum, Shaheen Naveed

Section of Internal Medicine

Objective: To determine the frequency of anxiety and depression among chronic spontaneous urticarial patients presenting at a tertiary care hospital.
Methods: The prospective, cross-sectional study was conducted at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, from February to August 2015, and comprised patients diagnosed with chronic spontaneous urticaria at the dermatology clinic. All the participants were assessed for anxiety and depression using Aga Khan University-Anxiety Depression Scale. Data was collected in face-to-face interview using a structured questionnaire. The association of the condition with different characteristics were calculated after stratification for age, gender, occupation and monthly income. SPSS 19 was used for …

Does Depressed Persons With Non-Cardiovascular Morbidity Have A Higher Risk Of Cvd? A Population-Based Cohort Study In Sweden, Aysha Almas, Jette Moller, Romaina Iqbal, Andreas Lundin, Yvonne Forsel

Section of Internal Medicine

Background: Depression often co-exists with non-cardiovascular morbid conditions. Whether this comorbidity increases the risk of cardiovascular disease has so far not been studied. Thus, the aim of this study was to determine if non-cardiovascular morbidity modifies the effect of depression on future risk of CVD.
Methods: Data was derived from the PART study (acronym in Swedish for: Psykisk hälsa, Arbete och RelaTioner: Mental Health, Work and Relationships), a longitudinal cohort study on mental health, work and relations, including 10,443 adults (aged 20-64 years). Depression was assessed using the Major Depression Inventory (MDI) and self-reported data on non-cardiovascular morbidity was assessed …

Association Of Catechol-Omethyltransferase (Comt Val158met) With Future Risk Of Cardiovascular Disease In Depressed Individuals - A Swedish Population-Based Cohort Study, Aysha Almas, Yvonne Forsell, Vincent Millischer, Jette Möller, Catharina Lavebrat

Section of Internal Medicine

Background: Catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT Val¹⁵⁸Met) has been implicated in both depression and cardiovascular disease. The purpose of this study was to assess if COMT Val¹⁵⁸Met, which influences the COMT enzyme activity, has an effect on the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in individuals with a history of depression and also to determine if the risk differs depending on gender.

Methods: Data from a longitudinal cohort study of mental health among Swedish adults was used. Depression was assessed twice 3 years apart for each participant, in 1998-2001 and 2001-2003. Saliva DNA was contributed by 4349 (41.7%) of the …