Prevalence and Associated Factors of Depressive Disorder among Prisoners in Mekelle General Prison Center, Tigray, Ethiopia: A Cross-Sectional Study Design

Abstract

Background. Depression is the most prevalent mental disorder among prisoners and is the second leading cause of disability worldwide. Depression affects more for those who are less educated, female, single, and young prisoners, and worldwide prevalence of depression among prisoners is 10.2% and 14% for male and female prisoners, respectively. However, a study conducted on prevalence of depression and associated factors is scarce in Ethiopia (Tigray) despite there is high magnitude. Methodology. An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted among randomly selected 414 prisoners in Mekelle General Prison Center. Data were collected from April to May 2019. A structured and standardized data collection tool (PHQ-9) was used. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression analysis was carried out by SPSS version 20. Statistical significance was determined at P value < 0.05. Result. In this study, 408 prisoners had participated. The prevalence of depression among prisoners was found to be 228 (55.9%; 95% CI: 51.2%, 61%). Being unemployed and student, lifetime substance use, history of child abuse, weight loss in prison, quality of meal in prison, being not happy inside prison, being sentenced for more than six years, and poor and moderate social support were significantly associated with depression. Conclusion. Prevalence of depression among prisoners was found to be high (55.9%). Prisoners who had lifetime substance use, being unemployed and student, history of childhood abuse, weight loss inside prison, being sentenced for more than six years, not happy inside prison, lack of social support, and poor quality of prison meal were more likely to have depression. Thus, giving training to strengthen social support, giving training on how to cope up with prison environment, giving training to scale up a happy life, and improving quality of prison meal as well as mental health service will help to reduce the problem. Conducting interventional study is relevant.

Depression and its associated factors among prisoners in East Gojjam Zone prisons, Northwest Ethiopia: a multi-centered cross-sectional study

“…However, this findings is higher than the studies conducted in Northwest Amhara (43.8%) [ 24 ], Jimma Town (41.9%) [ 8 ], in Nigerian (42.2%) [ 16 ], in Iran (29%) [ 15 ], and in France (17.9%) [ 14 ]. On the contrary the prevalence obtained from this study was lower than the studies done in Hawassa Town (56.4%) [ 17 ], Mekelle Ethiopia (55.9%) [ 26 ], and Malaysia (55.4%) [ 13 ]. The above variations could be explained by differences in the tool used to measure depression, the cut of value, the study settings, the length of sentenced year difference, and differences in the environmental characteristics of prisons.…”

Burden of depression and its predictors among prisoners in a central jail of Odisha, India

“…According to one study, those who reported a poor prison meal were more than twice as likely to develop depression as those who reported a good prison meal. [ 12 ] Hence, it is necessary to evaluate and address the living conditions of jail to ensure the adequate functioning of prisoners.…”

“…Besides this, depression is found as the main cause of disability among prisoners accounting for 18% of all cases. [ 12 ] Despite the severity of the problem, there is a dearth of studies available on prisoners assessing the prevalence of depression in Odisha. Thus, the findings of this study will be beneficial for both the prison inmates and policymakers to design better policies and interventions and to bring out new reformation in prison for the mental well-being of the prison inmates.…”

Detained Persons Incarcerated for the First Time and Needing Acute Psychiatric Care: Sociodemographic and Clinical Characteristics

“…They show a higher sensitivity to anxiety with higher rates of generalized anxiety disorders and panic attacks (16,17). However, other studies presented conflicting data regarding the differences between these two groups challenging the idea of a particular effect of first imprisonment on the psychological well-being of detained persons (18)(19)(20)(21). To get better insight into this issue, the present study investigates FTI and RLTI cases with psychiatric disorders admitted to an acute care ward located in the central prison of Geneva, Switzerland.…”