Psychological distress and its association with socio-demographic factors in a rural district in Bangladesh: A cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Psychological distress including depression and anxiety are among the most serious causes of morbidity and mortality in Bangladesh. There has been no study in the rural area to report the prevalence of and risk factors for psychological distress. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of and risk factors for psychological distress in a rural district in Bangladesh. METHODS: A total of 2425 adults (1249 women) aged 18-90 years were selected from the Narail upazilla using multi-level cluster random sampling for a cross-sectional study. Psychological distress was assessed using the Kessler 10 items questionnaire. Participants' socio-demographic status, life style factors and health conditions were also collected. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals for binary outcomes and mean changes for continuous outcomes of psychological distress score were computed. Logistic regression and generalized linear model techniques were used for analytical purpose. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of psychological distress was 52.5%. This proportion included 22.7% people rated as having mild psychological distress, 20.8% moderate and 9.0% severe. The prevalence of moderate (24.7% vs. 17.5%, p<0.001) and severe (16.2% vs. 2.5%, p<0.001) psychological distress was significantly higher in older adults of age 60-90 years than that in younger adults of age 18-59 years. The prevalence of severe psychological distress was higher in females than males and the difference increased with age (vs. (females vs males: 1.9% vs. 1.1% at age of