Prevalence and demographics of anxiety disorders: a snapshot from a community health centre in Pakistan

Hassan Khan¹ , Saira Kalia¹ , Ahmed Itrat¹ , Abdullah Khan¹ , Mahwash Kamal¹ , Muhammad A Khan¹ , Roha Khalid¹ , Salman Khalid¹ , Sunniya Javed¹ , Sanniya Javed¹ , Affan Umer¹ and Haider Naqvi²

¹Medical College, Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan

²Department of Psychiatry, Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan

author email corresponding author email

Annals of General Psychiatry 2007, 6:30doi:10.1186/1744-859X-6-30


Published:	13 November 2007

Abstract

Background

The developing world is faced with a high burden of anxiety disorders. The exact prevalence of anxiety disorders in Pakistan is not known. There is a need to develop an evidence base to aid policy development on tackling anxiety and depressive disorders in the country. This is the first pilot study to address the prevalence of anxiety disorders and their association with sociodemographic factors in Pakistan.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted among people visiting Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH), a tertiary care facility in Karachi, Pakistan. The point prevalence of anxiety amongst the sample population, which comprised of patients and their attendants, excluding all health care personnel, was assessed using the validated Urdu version of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). The questionnaire was administered to 423 people. Descriptive statistics were performed for mean scores and proportions.

Results

The mean anxiety score of the population was 5.7 ± 3.86. About 28.3% had borderline or pathological anxiety. The factors found to be independently predicted with anxiety were, female sex (odds ratio (OR) = 2.14, 95% CI 1.36–3.36, p = 0.01); physical illness (OR = 1.67, 95% CI 1.06–2.64, p = 0.026); and psychiatric illness (OR = 1.176, 95% CI 1.0–3.1, p = 0.048). In the final multivariate model, female sex (adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 2, 95% CI 1.28–3.22) and physical illness (AOR = 1.56, 95% CI 0.97–2.48) were found to be significant.

Conclusion

Further studies via nationally representative surveys need to be undertaken to fully grasp the scope of this emerging public health issue in Pakistan.