Prevalencia de trastornos depresivos e impedimento asociado en adolescentes de sexo femenino

Abstract

Background: From early adolescence, depressive disorders experience a significant increase, especially in female population, showing not only immediate adverse consequences, but also at later stages in adult development. Although its importance, there are few studies regarding the prevalence of these disorders in chilean adolescents. Methods: Estimation of prevalence of major depression and dysthymic disorders in 172 students from first year of secondary education. The computerized interview DISC-IV obtained a diagnosis based on DSM-IV criteria. Results: 10% of the population showed a depressive episode in the last year and more than 5% in the last month. The incidence of dysthymic disorder was low (1.2%). The incidence of major depressive subthreshold in the last year was 11.6% and 8.5% for subthreshold dysthymic disorder. Conclusions: Most of female with depressive disorders and subthreshold disorders presented impediments related to symptoms experienced. Although these high rates might suggest problems in the conceptualization of depressive disorders, they constitute the result of strict DSM-IV criteria application, including clinical significant criteria. These results are indicative of the need to pay attention to emotional wellbeing of female adolescents.