METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among the adult population aged 35-70 residing in rural and urban areas in Malaysia. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the short form Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition (DSM-IV) Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) questionnaire. Logistic regression models were fitted to identify the associated factors related to depressive symptoms.
RESULTS: About 3.7 % (95 % CI: 2.33-4.83) of the respondents reported having depressive symptoms. Younger adults aged 35-40 years old (AOR: 3.087; 95 % CI: 2.021-4.717), females (AOR: 2.318; 95 % CI: 1.669-3.219), widows and divorcees (AOR: 2.294; 95 % CI: 1.085-4.848), smokers (AOR: 1.843; 95 % CI: 1.334-2.545) and alcohol consumers (AOR: 1.843; 95 % CI: 1.264-2.688) showed a higher odds compared to their other counterparts. Underweight individuals (AOR: 1.899; 95 % CI: 1.177-3.065) and those diagnosed either with hypertension (AOR: 1.442; 95 % CI: 1.11-1.873), diabetes (AOR: 1.554; 95 % CI: 1.133-2.13), angina (AOR: 2.73; 95 % CI: 1.596-4.67), COPD (AOR: 4.187; 95 % CI: 1.528-11.472) or asthma (AOR: 1.906; 95 % CI: 1.309-2.774) were more likely to have depressive symptoms. Additionally, individuals with difficulty trusting people (AOR: 1.477; 95 % CI: 1.024-2.13) and those reported to experience either home or work-related stress (AOR: 2.584; 95 % CI: 2.003-3.331) were more prone to have depressive symptoms.
CONCLUSION: In this broad population-based study, about 3.7 % (95 % CI: 2.33-4.83) of respondents reported having depressive symptoms. Timely and well targeted collaborative intervention on the identified risk factors by the relevant authorities, would mitigate their effect on the quality of life and retard the progression into depression, especially among younger adults.
METHODS: A cross-sectional study involving 7585 adults was performed covering the rural and urban areas. Respondents with systolic blood pressure (SBP) of 120-139 mmHg and/or diastolic blood pressure (DBP) of 80-89 mmHg were categorized as prehypertensive, and hypertensive categorization was used for respondents with an SBP of ≥140 mmHg and/or DBP of ≥90 mmHg.
RESULTS: Respondents reported to have prehypertension and hypertension were 40.7% and 38.0%, respectively. Those residing in a rural area, older age, male, family history of hypertension, and overweight or obese were associated with higher odds of prehypertension and hypertension. Unique to hypertension, the factors included low educational level (AOR: 1.349; 95% CI: 1.146, 1.588), unemployment (1.350; 1.16, 1.572), comorbidity of diabetes (1.474; 1.178, 1.844), and inadequate fruit consumption (1.253; 1.094, 1.436).
CONCLUSIONS: As the prehypertensive state may affect the prevalence of hypertension, proactive strategies are needed to increase early detection of the disease among specific group of those residing in a rural area, older age, male, family history of hypertension, and overweight or obese.