Prevalence and influencing factors of depression among relatives of mental disorder patients

Objective To analyze prevalence and influencing factors of depression among relatives of inpatients with mental disorders and to provide references for making intervention measures.Methods Using Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) and random sampling,we surveyed family members of 600 mental disorder patients hospitalized in Shenyang Municipal Mental Health Center from October 2013 to July 2014.Logistic regression was adopted in data analysis.Results Among the 600 relatives of the inpatients,the average score of SDS was 61.22±11.26;457 were identified with depression tendency (SDS score > 53),with a detection rate of 71.67%,and the detection rate differed significantly by gender and age of the relatives (both P<0.05).Logistic regression analyses showed that risk factors for the relatives' depression tendency included female gender (odds ratioOR=4.018,95% confidence interval95%CI:1.998-8.081),aged 30-49 years (OR=3.177,95%CI:1.371-7.361),aged ≥50 years (OR=4.766,95%CI:1.768-12.846),and being a relative of an inpatients with severe mental disease (OR=15.488,95%CI:7.725-31.052) and the protective factors included being a relative other than parents or elders of an inpatient (inclusive of spouseOR=0.031,95%CI:0.002-0.559,childrenOR=0.013,95%CI:0.001-0.240,and brothers and sistersOR=0.005,95%CI:0.000-0.088),high familial monthly income per capita (inclusive of 1500-2999 yuan RMBOR=0.117,95%CI:0.035-0.387, ≥3 000 yuanOR=0.120,95%CI:0.037-0.384),and being a relative of an inpatient with free medical service (OR=0.099,95%CI:0.040-0.244).Conclusion The detection rate of depression tendency is high among relatives of mental disorder inpatients and the situation needs to be concerned and specific psychological intervention is necessary.