Assessment of severity, quality of life and suicidal ideation in patients with depressive disorders

Abstract

Depression is estimated to be the third leading cause of disability and about 350 million people suffer from depression worldwide. Various biological, social, economic, cultural factors and environmental factors contribute for depression. A total of 102 patients were enrolled in the study. Majority of the patients (64, 62.74%) included in the study were female. The mean age of the study subjects was found to be 20.4±11.88 years. The severity of symptoms in depressed patients evaluated using Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) shows that 33.33% of the subjects were very severely depressed, followed by 29.41% of the subjects with moderate depression, 23.52 % with severe depression and 11.76% with mild depression. Quality of life was evaluated using WHOQOL BREF Scale in the study population. 51.96 % of subjects were having low quality of life (QoL) followed by 48% of subjects with medium QoL and 0.98% subjects with high QoL. Modified Scale for Suicidal Ideation (MSSI) was used to evaluate severity of suicidal ideation in study population. Interpretation of results shows that 74.50% were having low suicidal ideation and few subjects (8.82%) were found to have severe suicidal ideation. Depression negatively impacts individual’s functioning, work satisfaction, relationships, leisure, physical and mental health, sexual functioning, sleep patterns and overall sense of fulfilment and contentment with life. Severe form of depression can lead to suicidal risk, increased risk of morbidity, mortality, substantial imbalance on individual’s occupational potential, significant physical and psychosocial impairment.