Prevalence Of Depression In Areas Of Muzaffarabad City (Azad Kashmir) Affected By The 2005 Earthquake

Original Article

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Long-term mental health issues are caused by natural catastrophes. Nearly 73,276 people
were killed, hundreds were wounded, and millions were displaced after an earthquake hit Azad Kashmir (Pakistan)
on October 8, 2005. The goals of this research were to determine how common post-earthquake depression is, how
serious it is, and what effect it has on survivors’ lives, and to provide recommendations for therapies and long-term
psychological rehabilitation programmes for disaster victims.
METHODS: The research sample included 3,020 adults aged 18 and above from Ward 12, the city’s most affected
neighbourhood. There were a total of [430] participants, and the research ran from February 4 to October 4, 2012.
Clusters were selected at random to participate in the data collection process. Depression was diagnosed using the ICD10 Criteria for Depressive Illness in all of the subjects. The Urdu version of the Beck Depression Inventory was used
to evaluate the degree of depression in individuals who had already been diagnosed with a depressive disorder. The
information was then analysed using SPSS 10.0.
RESULTS: Participants’ average age was [36] years (n=430). There was a standard deviation of 12.44, and
61.2% of the population was male and 38.8% female. Our analysis of the BDI data revealed that 32% of the
population would suffer from depression at some time.
CONCLUSION: The survivors of the 2005 earthquake had three times the rate of depression as the general
population. These results provide further backing for facilitating long-term planning of psychological rehabilitation
treatments and other interventions aimed at enhancing the quality of life for the afflicted population.
KEYWORDS: mental health, prevalence, BDI scale, depression.