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Anxiety and Depression in a Village in Lesotho, Africa: A Comparison with the United States

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Michael Hollifield ,
Wayne Katon ,
David Spain  and
Limakatso Pule
Michael Hollifield*
Affiliation:
University of New Mexico School of Medicine, 2400 Tucker Ave, NE, Albuquerque, NM 87131, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle WA 98195, USA
Wayne Katon
Affiliation:
Consult-Liaison Service, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, RP-10, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195
David Spain
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Adjunct, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195
Limakatso Pule
Affiliation:
Lesotho Central Offices, Ministry of Health, Maseru, Lesotho
*
∗Correspondence
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Abstract

Adults in a village in Lesotho, Africa, were interviewed to determine the community prevalence of major depression, panic disorder, and generalised anxiety disorder. The prevalence data were compared with data from a large epidemiological study in the United States utilising the same research instrument. There was a significantly higher prevalence of all three diagnoses in Lesotho as compared with the United States. As in the United States, women were at an increased risk for these disorders, although statistical significance was not demonstrated for depression. The majority of people (77%) who had experienced panic attacks said they had sought help for their symptoms, with the majority attending Western-trained doctors. The relationship between explanatory models and help-seeking behaviour was explored in people who had had panic attacks. Less than 40% of those with generalised anxiety disorder said they sought help.

Type
Research Article
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 156 , Issue 3 , March 1990 , pp. 343 - 350
Copyright
Copyright © Royal College of Psychiatrists, 1990 

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