Article Prevalence of Major Depressive Disorder Among Spouses of Men Who Use Alcohol in a Rural Community in Central Sri Lanka

Aims: To estimate the prevalence of major depressive disorder (MDD) among spouses of men who use alcohol in two rural areas in Sri Lanka, and to examine whether the severity of alcohol-related problems (ARPs) inmen and presence of alcohol-related domestic violence are associatedwithMDD among these women. Method: In a cross-sectional study, ARPs among men were assessed using Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) questionnaire filled in bymen, and domestic violence and husbands ’ drink-ing pattern data obtained from thewomen. MDD among thewomen was ascertained using the Struc-tured Clinical Interview for DSM–IV Disorders for major depression. Using logistic regression we examined whether age, past history of depression, different indices of ARPs and domestic violence were associated with current MDD among the women. Results: Point prevalence of MDD in the sample was 33.3 % (95 % CI: 25.93, 40.73%). Once adjusted for other factors, morning drinking of the spouse (odds ratio = 4.11, 95 % CI: 1.25, 13.47; P = 0.019) and in-creasing age (odds ratio = 1.05, 95 % CI: 1.01, 1.09; P = 0.003) significantly increased the odds of MDD. Being subjected to domestic violence/arguments also had a trend to be associated with MDD among women, but was not significant (odds ratio = 2.29, 95 % CI: 0.95, 5.48; P = 0.062). Conclusion: The prevalence of MDD among spouses of men who use alcohol is markedly higher than that has been observed among Sri Lankan women in previous studies. The prevalence of MDD in women seems to increase when their husbands are morning drinkers, and with increasing age