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Mental disorders in primary health care: a study of their frequency and diagnosis in four developing countries

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 July 2009

T. W. Harding ,
V. De Arango ,
J. Baltazar ,
C. E. Climent ,
H. H. A. Ibrahim ,
L. Ladrido-Ignacio  and
N. N. Wig
T. W. Harding*
Affiliation:
Investigators in a WHO Collaborative Study on Strategies for Extending Mental Health Care
V. De Arango
Affiliation:
Investigators in a WHO Collaborative Study on Strategies for Extending Mental Health Care
J. Baltazar
Affiliation:
Investigators in a WHO Collaborative Study on Strategies for Extending Mental Health Care
C. E. Climent
Affiliation:
Investigators in a WHO Collaborative Study on Strategies for Extending Mental Health Care
H. H. A. Ibrahim
Affiliation:
Investigators in a WHO Collaborative Study on Strategies for Extending Mental Health Care
L. Ladrido-Ignacio
Affiliation:
Investigators in a WHO Collaborative Study on Strategies for Extending Mental Health Care
N. N. Wig
Affiliation:
Investigators in a WHO Collaborative Study on Strategies for Extending Mental Health Care
*
1Address for correspondence: Dr T. W. Harding, Medical Officer, World Health Organization, 1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland. Principal investigator for the study.
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Synopsis

1624 patients who were attending primary health facilities in 4 developing countries were examined to determine how many were suffering from mental disorder. Using stringent criteria to establish the presence of psychiatric morbidity, 225 cases were found, indicating an overall frequency of 13·9 %. The great majority of cases were suffering from neurotic illnesses and for most the presenting complaint was of a physical symptom, such as headache, abdominal pain, cough or weakness. The health workers following their normal procedure correctly detected one third of the psychiatric cases.

Type
Research Article
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 10 , Issue 2 , May 1980 , pp. 231 - 241
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1980

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