Depression prevalence in regular soldiers in a Colombian infantry battalion in 2017


Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22517/25395203.21921

Keywords:

Military Personnel, Depressive Symptoms, Suicidal Ideation, Prevalence, Mental Health

Abstract

Objective: To determine the prevalence of depression and its dimensions in soldiers in a Colombian battalion.

Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted to 410 soldiers; a questionnaire about depression issues was used to interview them.

The prevalence of depression was analyzed in general and specific terms. Addiotionally, some factors of interest that are associated with it were studied too.

Result: In general terms, the depression prevalence was 8,8%. On the other hand, the prevalence of the depression dimensions was: 11,7% for negative self-esteem, 24,6% for suicidal thoughts, 56,8% for poor social image perception, 26,3% for negative affect, 23, 4% for helplessness, and 19,3% for avoidance tendencies.

Conclusion: To conclude, it is necessary to improve the selection criteria in order to analyze the soldiers’ mental health and, in this way, not to choose the candidates with depressive tendencies.

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Author Biographies

Sandra Milena Alvaran Lopez, Universidad de Antioquia

Trabajadora social. Doctora en Cooperación para el Desarrollo. Universidad de Antioquia.

Sebastian Bedoya Mejia, Universidad de Antioquia

Estudiante de Doctorado en Epidemiología y Bioestadística de la Universidad CES.

Maria Ceneida Henao Valencia, Universidad de Antioquia

Gerente en Sistemas de Información en Salud. Universidad de Antioquia

Juan Carlos Velasquez Correa, Universidad de Antioquia

Gerente en Sistemas de Información en Salud. Universidad de Antioquia

Hugo Grisales Romero, Universidad de Antioquia

Doctor en Epidemiología. Universidad de Antioquia

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Published

2020-06-30

How to Cite

Alvaran Lopez, S. M., Bedoya Mejia, S., Henao Valencia, M. C., Velasquez Correa, J. C., & Grisales Romero, H. (2020). Depression prevalence in regular soldiers in a Colombian infantry battalion in 2017. Revista Médica De Risaralda, 26(1). https://doi.org/10.22517/25395203.21921

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Original Article