Frequency of Depression and Suicidal Thoughts in Young Adults of Pakistan: A Cross- Sectional Study

Abstract

Objective: To find the frequency and association of depression and suicidal ideation in young adults.Study design: A descriptive cross-sectional study.Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted in different areas of Pakistan, including Lahore andKarachi with the main population participating from the Islamabad and Rawalpindi region from May 2016 toAugust 2016.Materials and Methods: Printed and online versions of the questionnaire were filled by conveniently availableyoung adults in different cities of Pakistan between the ages of 15-25 years. Questionnaires were designed inthree parts: Part 1 comprised demographics. Part 2 was the Goldberg Depression Questionnaire which is usedfor depression screening, while Part 3 was the SBQ-R® used to identify individuals having suicide ideation andthose at risk of carrying out a suicide attempt.Results: A high proportion of individuals were in the range of mild-moderate depression, 87 (43.7%), while ahigh proportion of individuals, 139 (69.8%), possessed a suicide score range of 3-6, which corresponds to a verylow suicide attempt risk. The highest suicide score was between 16-18 and was possessed by only 2 (1%)individuals, while the highest depression score, which was any value above 54, was possessed by 45 (22.6%)individuals. Also, with increasing suicide score, the frequency seemed to decrease; 32 (16.1%) for a score rangeof 7-9, 15 (7.5%) for 10-12 score range and 11 (5.5%) for a score range of 13-15. However, the correlationcoefficient between the two had a value of +0.5, so there was a marked positive correlation.Conclusion: The frequency of depression in young adults was considerably high since many of the participantswere exposed to mild, moderate as well as severe depression. Also, there was a positive correlation betweendepression and suicide scores which predicted that depression can be a cause of suicide ideation and attempts.As the depression levels increased, the frequency of suicide tendencies was also salient.
 How to cite this: Anwar P, Salman R, Zahra M, Tufail R, Sohail RS, Arshad L. Frequency of Depression and Suicidal Thoughts in Young Adults of Pakistan: A Cross-Sectional Study. Life and Science. 2022; 3(4): 168-173. doi: http://doi.org/10.37185/LnS.1.1.233