PREDICTORS OF DEPRESSION IN PATIENTS PRESENTING WITH DYSPEPTIC SYMPTOMS IN A GI CLINIC

Authors

  • Khalid Mehmood
  • Zobia Hameed
  • Saleeta Shoukat
  • Fariha Hasan
  • Ali Yawar Alam
  • Abdul Hameed
  • Abdul Nadir

Abstract

Background: The association between dyspepsia, H. pylori and psychological distress has remained a
topic of intense debate over the past several decades. In Pakistan, where depression is highly prevalent
and dyspepsia is possibly present in a high percentage of population, little data exist about these
common health problems. This study was conducted to determine the frequency and predictors of
depression among patients presenting with dyspeptic symptoms in the Gastrointestinal (GI) Clinic of a
tertiary care hospital in Pakistan. Methods: Two hundred and sixty-nine consecutive patients were
enrolled in the study based on their presenting symptoms in the GI clinic at Shifa International Hospital,
Islamabad. Subjects with prior history of peptic ulcer disease (PUD), gallstones and HCV infections
were excluded from the study. Demographic and socioeconomic variables as well as dyspeptic
symptoms and important causes of dyspeptic symptoms were recorded. Depression was analysed based
on the Urdu version of Beck's Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II). The data were analysed using SPSS-
10 for univariate and multivariate analyses. Results: Mild depression was associated with lower
education status (p<0.001), lesser income (p<0.018), and lower socioeconomic status (p<0.009) as well
as rural residence (p<0.026). Smoking, alcohol-use, H. pylori infection, gender and dyspepsia were not
found to have any association with depression. On multivariate analysis, education and income group
remained significantly associated with mild depression. Clinically significant depression was found to
be associated with lower education and rural residence. Conclusion: Depression among dyspeptic
patients was found to be associated with socioeconomic status rather than dyspeptic symptoms or
important risk factors associated with dyspeptic symptoms.
Keywords: Depression, H. pylori, dyspeptic symptoms, education, income

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Published

2011-12-01

How to Cite

Mehmood, K., Hameed, Z., Shoukat, S., Hasan, F., Alam, A. Y., Hameed, A., & Nadir, A. (2011). PREDICTORS OF DEPRESSION IN PATIENTS PRESENTING WITH DYSPEPTIC SYMPTOMS IN A GI CLINIC. Journal of Ayub Medical College Abbottabad, 23(4), 49–52. Retrieved from https://jamc.ayubmed.edu.pk/index.php/jamc/article/view/2335

Issue

Vol. 23 No. 4 (2011): JOURNAL OF AYUB MEDICAL COLLEGE, ABBOTTABAD

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ORIGINAL ARTICLE

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