Ahmad Ali Noorbala
1*, Seyed Abbas Bagheri Yazdi
2, Soghrat Faghihzadeh
3, Koorosh Kamali
4, Elham Faghihzadeh
5, Ahmad Hajebi
6, Shahin Akhondzadeh
7, Azadeh Sedighnia
8, Hasan Karimi
91 Psychosomatic Medicine Research Center, Imam Khomeini Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran,
2 Department of Mental Health, Ministry of Health and Medical Education of Iran, Tehran, Iran,
3 Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran,
4 Department of Public Health, School of Public Health, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran,
5 Department of Biostatistics, Paramedical School, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran,
6 Research Center for Addiction and Risky Behaviors (ReCARB), Psychiatric Department, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran,
7 Psychiatric Research Center, Roozbeh Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran,
8 Psychosomatic Medicine Fellowship Residency of Tehran University of Medical Sciences,Tehran, Iran,
9 Responsible Manager of Mental Health in West Azarbayegan Provincial Health Center, West Azarbayegan University of Medical Sciences, Urumieh, Iran
Abstract
Introduction: This research aims to determine the mental health status of population aged
15 and over in the province of West Azarbaijan in
2015.
Method: This cross-sectional field study was
conducted on the residents of both urban and rural areas of the West Azarbaijan
province. Through systematic random cluster sampling, 1200 individuals were
selected from the residents of urban and rural areas of Urumia, Salmas and
Mahabad. The 28-item version of the General Health Questionnaire was applied as
the screening tool. The data were analyzed using SPSS, version 18.0 for
windows.
Results: Using GHQ traditional scoring
method, the results showed that 24% of individuals (29.1% of females and 18.7% of
males) were suspected of mental disorders. The prevalence rate of mental disorders was 19.8% for rural and 25.8% for
urban areas. Prevalence of somatization and anxiety was higher than social
dysfunction and depression and women revealed higher prevalence for these
disorders compared with men. It was also shown that the prevalence rate
significantly increased with age and was higher in women, people aged 65 and
above, urban residents, widowed or divorced, illiterate, housewives, unemployed
and retired people
Conclusion: The results of this study showed
that about a quarter of the people in the province were suspected to have
mental disorders. Comparing the results of the current survey with those of the
study conducted in 1999 suggests that the prevalence of mental disorders is on
the increase in this province (from 13.5% in 1999 to 24% in 2015). Therefore,
it seems vital that the officials take action in order to improve and maintain
mental health status of the people who are at risk.