Prevalence of depression and associated factors in adolescents Original research

Abstract

Introduction: The World Health Organization has stated that depression is a very frequent mental disorder, characterized by the appearance of sadness, loss of interest or pleasure, feelings of guilt or lack of self-esteem, sleep or appetite disorders, feeling tired, and having a lack of concentration. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of depression and associated factors in adolescents from 14 to 18 years students of the Luis Cordero High School in the city of Azogues, Cañar-Ecuador in the year 2019.

Methods: An analytical and cross-sectional investigation was carried out. The sample consisted of 262 students aged 14 to 18 in the Luis Cordero Luis Cordero High School. A survey was applied, which included the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Information was collected on forms, the data was processed using the SPSS V.15 program by absolute frequency, percentage, Chi square and odds ratio with a 95% confidence Interval and value P=0.05, which are represented in tables.

Results: When applying the HADS questionnaire, students were determined to have a rate of depression of 26%. The prevalence of depression in women was 14.1%, while in men it was 11.8%. These students resided in urban areas (21.4%) and did not have migrant parents (19.5%). The existence of domestic violence was 23.3% and poor academic performance was 21%. Regarding age, no differences were found with each age group corresponding to 13%.

Conclusions: The prevalence of depression in adolescents is high. The most affected are women and those with poor academic performance. However, there was no statistical association between the analyzed variables and the presence of depression.