A cross-sectional population-based study was conducted to identify the prevalence of common mental disorders and verify the association with chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and the self-reported number of chronic diseases. The
IntroductionIn recent decades, studies in psychiatric epidemiology have provided valuable information leading to better knowledge of the natural history of mental disorders and the identification of groups at increased risk, thus forming the basis for policy and treatment decisions in mental health 1 .Much attention has focused on the association between chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and psychiatric disorders. Various studies point to a higher rate of psychiatric disorders in patients with physical illness 2,3,4,5 . However, many studies on this association have focused on major depression 6,7,8 .Sub-clinical psychiatric syndromes, in addition to the so-called major psychiatric disorders, are known to pose a high individual and social cost, since they are associated with disability, work absenteeism, and increased outpatient visits 2,4,5,9,10 . Thus, in light of the additive role of psychiatric morbidity in relation to the disability caused by physical illness 8,11 , there is an urgent need to include such syndromes in this investigation.Common mental disorders, a concept that includes non-psychotic depressive, anxious, and somatiform disorders, is a broad diagnostic category widely used in epidemiological studies 1,12 . The spectrum includes sub-clinical conditions in addition to major psychiatric disorders, thus allowing a more complete view of the community's mental health status.ARTIGO ARTICLE
