Medicine
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This repository contains the published and unpublished research of the Faculty of Medicine by the staff members of the faculty
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Item Assessment of mental health problems among adolescents in Sri Lanka: Findings from the cross-sectional global school-based health survey(John Wiley and Sons, 2022) Rasalingam, G.; Rajalingam, A.; Chandradasa, M.; Nath, M.Background and aims: Mental health condition among adolescents is a leading cause of health-related disability in Sri Lanka. The study aims to estimate the prevalence and evaluate the associated risk factors in three major mental health domains-loneliness, anxiety and suicidal ideation-among Sri Lankan adolescents. Methods: We conducted a secondary analysis of cross-sectional data of 3262 adolescents from the Global School-based Health Survey (GSHS) conducted by the WHO in 2016. We modeled the binary outcome variables using multivariable logistic regression models with exposures representing demography, food habits, personal hygiene, behavior, substance abuse, parental and social engagement of the respondents. Results: We estimated the prevalence of loneliness, anxiety and suicidal ideation as 30.8% (95% CI: 29.3, 32.5), 20.2% (95% CI: 18.8, 21.6) and 3.7% (95% CI: 3.1, 4.4), respectively, and the overall prevalence as 40.3% (95% CI: 38.6, 42.0). Mental health problems were more prevalent among females than males. Engagement with parents and close friends, adequate nutritional intake and physically active lifestyles reduced the risk of common mental health problems. Exposure variables like food insecurity, truancy, second-hand smoking, physical fight, and being bullied increased adolescents' risk of reported psychological problems. Conclusions: We conclude that the prevalence of mental health problems in the Sri Lankan adolescent population was higher than the global average. Results suggest that future policy decisions to mitigate mental health problems among Sri Lankan adolescents should incorporate an integrated approach involving the individual, family and community to promote positive home and school environments combined with an active and healthy lifestyle.Item Delayed anxiety and depressive morbidity among dengue patients in a multi-ethnic urban setting: first report from Sri Lanka(BioMed Central, 2018) Gunathilaka, N.; Chandradasa, M.; Champika, L.; Siriwardana, S.; Wijesooriya, L.I.BACKGROUND: Although the physical consequences of dengue are well documented, delayed psychological co-morbidities are not well studied to date. Therefore, the objective of the present study was to determine the prevalence of depressive, anxiety and stress symptoms among past dengue patients. METHODS: A community-based, case-control study in a multi-ethnic urban setting was conducted in Sri Lanka involving adults who were diagnosed to have dengue fever by a positive dengue IgM antibody response between 6 and 24 months ago. Self-administered Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21), Centre for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CESD-20) and a structured clinical interview by a psychiatrist were done in the patients and in an age and gender-matched control group. RESULTS: Fifty-three participants each in the patient (mean age 42.9 years, SD 15.5) and control (mean age 41.6 years, SD 15.3) groups were surveyed. The ages ranged from 18 to 70 years and 64.2% were females. The majority (90.6%; n = 48) of the individuals had been diagnosed with dengue fever followed by dengue haemorrhagic fever (9.4% n = 5). Denguepatients had higher DASS-21 mean depressive scores (means 11.7/9.4, SD 6.4/4.0, t = 2.2, p = .028), anxiety scores (means 10.7/7.2, SD 6.8/1.8, t = 3.6, p = .0005), stress scores (means 12.0/8.8, SD 5.3/3.5, t = 3.6, p = .0004) and CESD-20 scores (means 16.1/11.7, SD 9.4/7.3, t = 2.6, p = .008) than controls. The DSM-5 depressive disorder was clinically detected by the psychiatrist among 15.1 and 7.5% in patient and control groups (OR 2.1; CI .5-7.7; p = .22). Limitations: a limitation is the small sample size. CONCLUSION: Patients with past dengue had significantly higher depressive, anxiety and stress symptoms than the control group according to the DASS-21 and CESD-20 tools. To our knowledge, this is the first report on delayed psychological morbidity related to dengue. This may warrant healthcare professionals to incorporate mental counselling for dengue patients.